Is cryptocurrency bad for the environment?

[taufik123]

there is no pollution caused by bitcoin, it's only possible that bitcoin mining requires greater electrical energy so that the electrical energy used increases. but I don't think it will be a problem, because currently a lot of electrical energy is being developed that comes from natural uses, such as wind power or hydro power.

I don't think so. There are several levels of pollution caused by Bitcoin. The computer network that mines bitcoin around the world currently emits about 60 million tonnes of CO2 or the equivalent of what Greece needs, according to Bank of America. It is known, bitcoin transactions consume as much as 32 tera watts of energy every year. According to the Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index published by Digiconomist, that much energy is enough for the energy consumption of 3 million US households.

However, as technology develops, the level of pollution will decrease if every miner uses environmentally friendly fuels. Currently, many miners have started to switch and are already thinking about the impact on their environment, not only concerned with profit.

[DibiaVxosis]

there is no reason to say bitcoin is bad for the environment, only some people say bitcoin is bad for the environment, bitcoin has long been founded by satoshi nagatomo, why only now there are so many debates like that, if bitcoin really damages the environment why not prevent it in the first place..

Most times the people who says bitcoin is bad for the environment say it out of ignorance, most of them have little or no understanding about bitcoin and possibly just take any Damn bad news there hear about bitcoin. I can proudly say bitcoin adds value to the environment, check out in some countries where there are lack of job opportunities, crypto trading and investing in bitcoin serves as a self employment to their citizens thereby reducing the rate of poverty.

[ethereumhunter]

there is no reason to say bitcoin is bad for the environment, only some people say bitcoin is bad for the environment, bitcoin has long been founded by satoshi nagatomo, why only now there are so many debates like that, if bitcoin really damages the environment why not prevent it in the first place..

Most times the people who says bitcoin is bad for the environment say it out of ignorance, most of them have little or no understanding about bitcoin and possibly just take any Damn bad news there hear about bitcoin. I can proudly say bitcoin adds value to the environment, check out in some countries where there are lack of job opportunities, crypto trading and investing in bitcoin serves as a self employment to their citizens thereby reducing the rate of poverty.

People say bitcoin is bad for the environment because they do not see how bitcoin work. Maybe the government sees it as bad for the environment because the popularity of bitcoin increases yearly, so they think that bitcoin can be their next treat. The government can not fully control bitcoin so they do not like it and warn people not to stay close to bitcoin. But when people see that bitcoin can be a new opportunity to make money, they will search for more info and use bitcoin. Yes, crypto trading and investing in bitcoin gives people a chance to be the new jobs and make money.

[zanezane]

Here we go again with the BS being spread by anti-bitcoin crowd, no bitcoin isn't bad for the environment, in any aspect of bitcoin, almost everything is just a consumer of electricity and not a producer of electricity. What we have to worry much more are the producers of this pollutants rather than the consumer because in a same sense we are also to blame as individuals since we also consume electricity.

[sapnu]

Bitcoin alone cannot be considered bad for the environment hence the way it is being earned or mined is the one thatv causes damage to the environment. The massive use of fossil fuel so that people can mine bitcoin is very damaging to the environment that's why many are already finding a new source of renewable energy. It has become one of Elon Musk's alibi on why he suddenly chose to remove bitcoin as a mode of payment in Tesla and came back after he said he find a new way of mining bitcoin. Let us not be selfish about this matter, let us protect still nature or else it will pay us back in the future.

[finaleshot2016]

People really are believing that bitcoin is bad for the enviroment but they didn't realize that there are many things which x3 worse that ruins the environment. This is a non-stop topic because many people are still worrying that bitcoin might destroy our environment but the reality is, it's just a small portion that affects the environment compare to other businesses that produces toxic wastes. I really hate this fud that was created recently and even known people like Elon believe this without putting research on it.

[Shasha80]

People really are believing that bitcoin is bad for the enviroment but they didn't realize that there are many things which x3 worse that ruins the environment. This is a non-stop topic because many people are still worrying that bitcoin might destroy our environment but the reality is, it's just a small portion that affects the environment compare to other businesses that produces toxic wastes. I really hate this fud that was created recently and even known people like Elon believe this without putting research on it.

Actually I'm not surprised that there will always be people looking for Bitcoin flaws, but they forget to do their research properly. Bitcoin is bad
for environment with big electricity usage, but they forget that there are many more severe environmental damage out there for decades,
without any decisive action from the government. Nothing in this world is perfect in my opinion, as well as Bitcoin which has its drawbacks.
But we have to be fair in judging something, meaning don't just look at the flaws, but compare that to the positives that Bitcoin can provide.

[sunsilk]

there is no reason to say bitcoin is bad for the environment, only some people say bitcoin is bad for the environment, bitcoin has long been founded by satoshi nagatomo, why only now there are so many debates like that,

It's been brought up by Elon Musk about mining and renewable energy. He's an 'advocate' of greener energy and that's why it's been an issue lately.

if bitcoin really damages the environment why not prevent it in the first place..

They're putting the point of their fingers to bitcoin but they do not see those other businesses that are bringing more waste and not eco-friendly with their operations. As someone who's got much influence, he's misled a lot of his followers.

[LittleBitFunny]

I got this on Cointelegraph
If you do a serial based on destructive things, the banking system and the gold and diamond industries are more destructive than bitcoin. Even Xbox game studies are consuming much more Energy than Bitcoin mining. There is no headache in wasting energy on these non-productive activities, but all the problems are just with bitcoin mining! where bitcoin is the ultimate solution of prevention of banking corruption.

[cotton ball]

People really are believing that bitcoin is bad for the enviroment but they didn't realize that there are many things which x3 worse that ruins the environment. This is a non-stop topic because many people are still worrying that bitcoin might destroy our environment but the reality is, it's just a small portion that affects the environment compare to other businesses that produces toxic wastes. I really hate this fud that was created recently and even known people like Elon believe this without putting research on it.

I agree with your opinion, why is bitcoin always the scapegoat, even though there are many other companies that cause very severe environmental damage, such as the Lapindo company in my country, which emits toxic waste, almost several villages drowned because of the mud that came out of the company them, I strongly disagree if anyone says bitcoin is damaging the environment..

[temple]

there is no reason to say bitcoin is bad for the environment, only some people say bitcoin is bad for the environment, bitcoin has long been founded by satoshi nagatomo, why only now there are so many debates like that,

It's been brought up by Elon Musk about mining and renewable energy. He's an 'advocate' of greener energy and that's why it's been an issue lately.

if bitcoin really damages the environment why not prevent it in the first place..

They're putting the point of their fingers to bitcoin but they do not see those other businesses that are bringing more waste and not eco-friendly with their operations. As someone who's got much influence, he's misled a lot of his followers.

Elon Musk also has a big fat agenda why he is following the green energy movement. He definitely gets subsidies from all kinds of organizations that belong the green energy movement. When he bought Bitcoin he probably got into trouble, maybe even into contractual trouble. I have no idea how many subsidies he gets, but I can imagine it's quite a high amount given the businesses he has and the vision he has for them.

[Kiley33]

Because the governments of various countries are improving the environment and reducing carbon emissions, the media took this opportunity to say that mining is not good for the environment. Although it is indeed global warming now, there are also many green energy mining, so I think it is wrong to think that Bitcoin mining is harmful to the environment.

[fillippone]

I got this on Cointelegraph
If you do a serial based on destructive things, the banking system and the gold and diamond industries are more destructive than bitcoin. Even Xbox game studies are consuming much more Energy than Bitcoin mining. There is no headache in wasting energy on these non-productive activities, but all the problems are just with bitcoin mining! where bitcoin is the ultimate solution of prevention of banking corruption.

Gentle reminder:
you can find this document linked, together with many others, in my thread:
Debunking the "Bitcoin is an environmental disaster" argument

[ilovealtcoins]

Cryptocurrencies only have a small impact on the environment and the benefits of cryptocurrencies outweigh the harms.
Based on economic reference, cryptocurrencies create savings in deposit time, security of DAPPs, deposits. It's better than the traditional way banks operate.
Cryptocurrencies promote various fields such as currency, employment, data governance, entertainment. Cryptocurrency is really being applied to life and is being recognized as a legal asset.

[JohnBitCo]

Here we go again with the BS being spread by anti-bitcoin crowd, no bitcoin isn't bad for the environment, in any aspect of bitcoin, almost everything is just a consumer of electricity and not a producer of electricity. What we have to worry much more are the producers of this pollutants rather than the consumer because in a same sense we are also to blame as individuals since we also consume electricity.

I never heard of environmental problems related to crypto , until Elon Musk highlighted this.
I think it was not a realistic analysis as waste produce by factories and other things are way more than it is being produced by minning crypto currency. Crypto is not at all bad for the environment. It's just a fud being spread by Elon musk.

[kryptqnick]

I got this on Cointelegraph
If you do a serial based on destructive things, the banking system and the gold and diamond industries are more destructive than bitcoin. Even Xbox game studies are consuming much more Energy than Bitcoin mining. There is no headache in wasting energy on these non-productive activities, but all the problems are just with bitcoin mining! where bitcoin is the ultimate solution of prevention of banking corruption.

If the image is of annual energy consumption of the total banking system of the world, then it doesn't look good for Bitcoin because it's used by 1-2% of the population, whereas bank accounts are used by at least 50% of the population. That being said, I'm not sure this number for the banking system actually accounts for everything. For example, there are TONS of bank branches in every big city, and does this number take into account all the electricity bills for keeping these buildings heated and full of light? If not, it's not a very fair comparison.
We have to be conscious of energy waste, but it's also important to focus or moving to alternative energy sources rather than on reducing energy consumption.

[AicecreaME]

Hello everybody!

The world of digital assets stems from the act of crypto mining wherein ‘miners’ solve complex mathematical problems to add blocks of transactional information to the blockchain. They are rewarded with bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as an incentive for maintaining the network. However, to do all this, miners consume significant amounts of energy that lead to environmental concerns.

As more people take interest in the world of cryptocurrency and how it works, the demand for crypto mining increases as well.
What type of impact does this have on the environment in terms of energy consumption? Let’s find out.

How does crypto mining work?

To understand the effect of cryptocurrency on the environment, you should first know how crypto mining works. Here’s a step by step guide on how the mining process works:

Step 1 - Verifying transactions using nodes

There are two ways to mine cryptocurrency: using your own hardware or software or through a cloud mining service. Miners first verify the transactions using nodes to make sure they are legitimate, then they move on to the next step.

Step 2- Creating a new block of data

The next step is when blocks are added to the blockchain. When the transactions have been verified, these are added into a block of data where they can no longer be altered or changed.

Step 3 - Additional information and hashes are added

Hashing or using mathematical processes takes place next. When the new blocks of data have been added, hashes and other information are included. To generate the hashes that will serve as each block’s ‘fingerprint’, miners verify or solve mathematical problems to complete the process.

Step 4 - Verification

Once the new hash is verified by all members of the network through a consensus, the block is then successfully added to the blockchain. The miner who was able to solve the problem first will then receive a set amount of cryptocurrency as a reward.

Why does crypto mining require so much energy?

The process of mining demands large energy consumption, reaching up to 120 Terawatt hours every year, which is equivalent to around 1% of the world’s energy consumption.

Experts have compared this level of energy consumption to the likes of small countries like Greece, Argentina and Chile who use fewer amounts of power annually. But why exactly does crypto mining require so much energy?

Cryptocurrency blockchains are public and decentralised so the upkeep of the entire network is left in the hands of its community that consists of computers all over the world. Part of this community are miners who play a huge role in ensuring that the network is secured and immutable. To do this, they use high-powered mining equipment that consumes a lot of energy.

The environmental impact of cryptocurrencies

With the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency, it’s important to understand the impact of crypto mining on the environment. One of the biggest effects it has on nature is carbon emissions. Due to crypto or bitcoin mining, the amount of carbon emissions on the planet has increased by 40 million tons just over the course of two years.

E-waste is also another result of crypto mining. As crypto becomes more in-demand, miners will have to upgrade their hardware to make the mining process more effective. Over time, the outdated machines are turned into e-waste that is considered useless and non-recyclable.

Overall, e-waste and carbon emissions both affect climate change. This means that they contribute to the breaking of the ozone layer that results in global warming and other environmental concerns.

The future between cryptocurrencies and the environment

The next step to take for most cryptocurrencies is to go with more sustainable options. If miners use renewable energy instead of fossil fuels, this could turn the situation around for the better.

The carbon footprint of crypto mining would decrease dramatically if it weren’t for the ‘proof of work’ process since it requires all miners in the network to solve cryptographic problems, which means expending a ton of energy.

In fact, there are now cryptocurrencies that don't require mining at all. Some of the more sustainable options like Cardano, Ethereum and Bitgreen use ‘proof of stake’ to validate their transactions. In the proof of stake process, only validators that have ‘staked’ their coins or have already processed transactions can verify transactions and be incentivised.

There are other steps being taken to mine cryptocurrency quickly and use less energy while doing so. For example, the government in El Salvador has recently adopted Bitcoin as their legal currency on June 9, 2021. These are mined using the energy from nearby active volcanoes to promote a more sustainable process.

When other digital assets follow in these footsteps, it will lead the world of crypto to a more eco-friendly future wherein cryptocurrencies and mother nature can co-exist peacefully.

Thanks for reading. If you have some thoughts, feel free to leave a comment.


Cheers,
Karl


Source: Bitcasino blog

Cryptocurrency definitely has a negative impact on the environment. Actually, a lot of industries really have that effect since most devices, hardware, and software are really consuming a lot of energy that comes from fossil fuels which are non-renewable. Crypto isn't exempted from possessing that kind of influence on the environment. Before, a lot of mining sites are really consuming great power to supply their operations. Hence, many mining sites have closed down because of the minimization of electricity consumption.

Right now, more mining sites are currently using and starting to switch to sustainable energy for lesser cost and for lesser damage to the environment as well. Sustainability is one of the advocacies of most mining operations to avoid an additional carbon footprint that could damage the planet's ozone layer. Eco-friendly cryptocurrency operations are advocated and a lot of countries that comprised of the most percentage of mining are now encouraged to use renewable sources of energy instead. I agree with your example about El Salvador using geothermal energy which later on converted to become electrical energy that could power their mining sites. These kinds of steps make it more possible to go green and togetherly exist with the environment harmonically.

[EvieLannister]

Due to the high power consumption of Bitcoin mining, many media have caught this and began to report the news that Bitcoin mining wastes energy. But is Bitcoin really a waste of energy?
In our daily life, there are many places where energy is wasted:

• When we are out, we will not turn off all the electrical appliances in the house.
• We often forget to take out the banknotes in our pockets to wash clothes, which leads to the consumption of banknotes (because the banknotes are made of trees)
• The carbon dioxide we emit when we drive to and from get off work every day

These are pollution to the environment
Now Bitcoin has green energy mining
Bitcoin is easy to carry and not easy to wear[/list]

[Dhaniii]

there is no reason to say bitcoin is bad for the environment, only some people say bitcoin is bad for the environment, bitcoin has long been founded by satoshi nagatomo, why only now there are so many debates like that, if bitcoin really damages the environment why not prevent it in the first place..

Most times the people who says bitcoin is bad for the environment say it out of ignorance, most of them have little or no understanding about bitcoin and possibly just take any Damn bad news there hear about bitcoin. I can proudly say bitcoin adds value to the environment, check out in some countries where there are lack of job opportunities, crypto trading and investing in bitcoin serves as a self employment to their citizens thereby reducing the rate of poverty.

cryptocurrencies don't harm the environment like you said. With the existence of cryptocurrencies some of them have reduced their actions in the environment, some of their time is just to monitor the future growth of the market. On the other hand, they have indirectly increased the economic growth in the environment they live in.

[Ebede]

there is no reason to say bitcoin is bad for the environment, only some people say bitcoin is bad for the environment, bitcoin has long been founded by satoshi nagatomo, why only now there are so many debates like that, if bitcoin really damages the environment why not prevent it in the first place..

I can say those dudes that is saying that bitcoin is bad to environment never come with bitcoin fully, looking at what cryptocurrency has done to the environment is opened to everyone even to our newbies such as humans offsprings know that bitcoin is the light of world currently, I Know in future everything will be going to bitcoin.