We are all probably aware of the recent IPCC report exhorting immediate action before 2030 to prevent catastrophic climate change. Yesterday I came across a report I thought would be interesting to all you blockchain aficionados: according to the new study, Bitcoin use alone could be responsible for tipping our climate beyond the 2°C warming limit urged by the scientific community.
How can this be?
Basically, all of our daily activities have a carbon footprint, be it directly (like the electricity we use at home) or indirectly (AKA secondary carbon footprint, referring to consuming products that themselves have a carbon footprint). And I'm sure you are aware that mining Bitcoin is a very computationally demanding process, which means it consumes a lot of electricity. In fact, the researchers estimated that Bitcoin produced 69 megatons of CO2 in 2017 alone. The total energy-related CO2 emissions for the same year were estimated to be around 32.5 gigatons (a historical high by the way.)
After analysing data like the power efficiency of the computers used and the country of residence of the Bitcoin miners, the researchers extrapolated their estimated CO2 generation using previous known rates of technological adoption. If Bitcoin expands at the average rate other technologies have in the past it would be enough to push our climate beyond the 2°C limit in just 22 years. We do not know if Bitcoin (plus other blockchains) adoption will behave like previous technologies, but it's something to take seriously.
Is the solution to destroy our technology? Of course not.
Sure, being mindful of your consumption and not being wasteful is still essential. Some have already taken their mining rigs to countries that produce electricity renewably. But the real answer is to mobilize and get our governments to move rapidly and fully towards green energy production. Even if you don't believe in climate change, moving to green energy would remain essential for our economy and flourishing. We are talking about a form of energy generation that is more efficient, renewable, friendlier to the environment and healthier.
Press release:
Original research paper:
"Bitcoin emissions alone could push global warming above 2°C" at Nature Climate Change