It’s no secret that mining is a fairly polluting and energy-intensive activity. But obviously some companies are trying to reduce this impact through green energy. Explanations.
Good news for those who are exasperated by the pollution that results from Bitcoin mining, the Bitcoin Mining Council announced that the exploitation of renewable energies had increased by more than 59% in 2021. The study on the subject explains that 44 companies in the sector (which still represent 50% of total production) are increasingly using green energies to mine cryptocurrency.
A less polluting bitcoin
In the reassuring data, we can learn that Bitcoin mining represents only 0.16% of the world’s energy and that this “industry” emits only 0.09% of carbon emissions. Obviously that’s always too much and that’s why things seem to be moving in the right direction.
Consumption in MegaWatts is also improving with better efficiency of mining techniques since the first quarter of 2021. New equipment is more expensive to purchase but less energy-consuming on arrival.
Green in the distant future
Finally, the various industry players claim that bitcoin will be mined with 85% renewable energy in 2025 and that mining should be completely green by 2050. Still too long, say environmentalists, and has it really wrong?
What do you think of bitcoin mining? (and other cryptocurrencies).