Cryptocurrency

Bitcoin’s Climate Problem

As companies and investors increasingly say they are focused on climate and sustainability, the cryptocurrency’s huge carbon footprint could become a red flag.

Bitcoin’s steep environmental costs go beyond its hunger for energy

Bitcoin's climate impact rivals that of beef or crude oil, according to a new analysis.

How to Decarbonize Crypto

The sins of FTX aren’t the only problem the crypto world needs to pay for.

Mining Crypto Is Even Worse for the Environment Than We Thought

We knew mining cryptocurrency uses a cubic crap-ton of energy — but new investigations have revealed that the situation is actually worse than we thought. As the New York Times reveals in a new deep-dive look into the environmental and social impacts crypto mining has on the regions where these energy-intensive rigs live, most of the folks who have to deal with crypto's consequences have little to do with the digital currency.

The Environmental Cost of Crypto

Cryptocurrencies may exist only in the virtual world, but their impact on our natural resources is huge. That's largely because the technology underpinning crypto is an energy vampire that devours more electricity than do many countries. But that's only part of the story.

The Environmental Impacts of Cryptomining

In the first comprehensive documentation of the explosive growth of cryptocurrency mining in the United States, a new guidebook examines how this industry is impacting utilities, energy systems, emissions, communities and ratepayers.

How do we solve bitcoin’s carbon problem?

In theory, a greener bitcoin is possible. The digital coin’s energy consumption is tied to its underlying “proof-of-work” protocol (PoW). This is the decentralised consensus mechanism that secures the currency and prevents fraud or hacking, in the absence of oversight from banks or another centralised body. The role of bitcoin miners is essentially to verify transactions on the blockchain.

Bitcoin climate impact greater than gold mining, study shows

Bitcoin is less “digital gold” and more “digital beef”, according to a study that suggests the cryptocurrency has a climate impact greater than that of gold mining and on the level of natural gas extraction or rearing cattle for meat.

Bitcoin Could Rival Beef or Crude Oil in Environmental Impact

Bitcoin mining is notoriously energy-intensive, but new research suggests it may contribute as much to climate change as the beef or crude oil industry, by one estimate. In a study published Thursday in Scientific Reports, researchers compared the approximate environmental cost of mining the digital currency to the impact of other industries and countries.

Bitcoin Uses More Electricity Than Many Countries. How Is That Possible?

Cryptocurrencies have emerged as one of the most captivating, yet head-scratching, investments in the world. They soar in value. They crash. They’ll change the world, their fans claim, by displacing traditional currencies like the dollar, rupee or ruble. They’re named after dog memes. And in the process of simply existing, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, one of the most popular, use astonishing amounts of electricity.

Environmental Groups Pressure Bitcoin Community to Lower Energy Use

Consortium launches effort advocating changes to the cryptocurrency’s code.

Ethereum is ditching its ‘miners.’ Why?

A complex software change to the cryptocurrency ethereum holds the potential to dramatically reduce its energy consumption — and resulting climate-related pollution. But the transition known as “the merge” is not going to do the trick by itself.

Fact-Checking 8 Claims About Crypto’s Climate Impact

Cryptocurrencies are bad for the environment—at least, that’s what most people online seem to believe. Pro-crypto posts on social media are often flooded with angry comments about the industry’s outsized contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. Studies estimate that Bitcoin mining, the process that safeguards the Bitcoin network, uses more power globally per year than most countries, including the Philippines and Venezuela. On the other side, members of the crypto community argue that crypto mining is actually good for the environment in several crucial ways. They say that it offers a new, energy-hungry market that will encourage renewable projects. In the long run, they say, crypto will revolutionize the energy grid, and soak up excess energy that would have been otherwise wasted.

Is Bitcoin Inherently Bad For The Environment?

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have an energy and environmental problem. But if done right, it might be possible to channel all that energy into something good for the planet.

Technology: UNM researchers find Bitcoin mining is environmentally unsustainable

Taken as a share of the market price, the climate change impacts of mining the digital cryptocurrency Bitcoin is more comparable to the impacts of extracting and refining crude oil than mining gold, according to an analysis published in Scientific Reports by researchers at The University of New Mexico.

The Real-World Costs of the Digital Race for Bitcoin

Bitcoin mines cash in on electricity — by devouring it, selling it, even turning it off — and they cause immense pollution. In many cases, the public pays a price.

What are the environmental impacts of cryptocurrencies?

Like the mining industry, the cryptocurrency mining industry has serious environmental ramifications as a result of the energy-intensive process through which coins are created. But unlike the mining industry, the cryptocurrency industry may start changing the way it operates.

Why Bitcoin Is Bad for the Environment

Cryptocurrency mining uses huge amounts of power—and can be as destructive as the real thing.

Failing Crypto Could Be a Win for the Environment

The uncertainty plaguing the crypto world is obviously devastating for investors and finance fanatics, but it could actually have a silver lining. Cryptocurrency is terrible for the environment. And a crypto crash could have a positive impact on greenhouse gas emissions and the future of digital currency.