Environmental legislation, consumer pressure and the credit crunch are all contributing to an imminent explosion in the demand for products and services that assist the greening of IT, predicts UK compliance specialist IT Governance.

In response to the growing need for intelligent, practical and hype-free guidance, IT Governance will publish a Best Practice report, ‘Green IT - Benefits and Best Practices', in September, aiming to help managers get to grips with greening their IT infrastructure. The report will be complemented by ‘Green IT in Practice', a hands-on book on the subject from IT Governance which describes, in clear and straightforward terms, how one organisation - the John Lewis Partnership - implemented a Green IT strategy.

These publications form a part of IT Governance's rapidly growing range of green IT resources, which include a full range of guidance around the ISO 14000 Environmental Management System, all designed to support organizations that wish to implement a Green IT strategy while maintaining that essential bottom-line focus.

As a major power consumer, the IT sector is directly and indirectly responsible for producing significant amounts of greenhouse gases and toxic waste. Analyst firm Gartner calculates that the IT and communications sector is responsible for approximately 2% of global carbon dioxide emissions - the same amount as aviation, an industry vilified by environmentalists.

Alan Calder, Chief Executive of IT Governance, said: "Many global companies now view green initiatives as necessary to staying competitive. Now businesses realise that they can make long-term savings and increase operational efficiencies through implementing greener ways of working, especially around technology. And this is especially true in difficult economic circumstances like now. Green IT in Practice and our new Best Practice Report on IT gives business leaders the information and insight they need to boost their green credentials."