Researchers Find Bitcoin’s Carbon Footprint Is Comparable to That of Las Vegas

A recently-published study in the journal Joule argues that Bitcoin’s carbon footprint is worth taking into consideration. Although not as sizeable as most major multinational industries, it is still significant. The research team recommends that people should take more efforts to reduce its carbon footprint.

Bitcoin CO2 Emissions Comparable to a ‘Major Western City’

The team found that in late 2018, the entire Bitcoin network produced somewhere between 22-22.9M tons of carbon dioxide per year. That is comparable to a major Western city, or for comparison, the entire island of Sri Lanka. In total, the global amount of carbon emissions were around 37B that year. Although Bitcoin makes up only a small fraction of global emissions, it’s still sizeable. Most of the computing power used to mine the cryptocurrency comes from Asia (68 percent), Europe (17 percent), and North America (15 percent). Many have said that the lenient environment standards in China and elsewhere in Asia are to blame for Bitcoin’s high CO2 emissions.

Carbon Emissions per Transaction Remain High

Although much of Bitcoin’s energy consumption is renewable energy, it still uses up a disproportionate amount compared to other payment processors. According to Alex de Vries, a Bitcoin researcher speaking to the  Associated Press, the real shock is when the carbon output is considered per transaction. He estimates that it comes out to ‘271 kilograms of CO2 per transaction — or several hundred times that of a standard credit card payment.’ de Vries says that the study’s findings were consistent with his own, but still, there is little being done to make mining more energy-efficient. Ultimately, the problem goes beyond Bitcoin specifically. The carbon emissions Bitcoin demands are entirely dependent on how efficient our energy-producing systems are. As of now, most miners opt for electricity from sources with high levels of pollutants likely because it is cheaper and more accessible. Until a different market incentive is put in place to use more renewable energy, the issue does not look likely to be resolved. Do you believe Bitcoin uses up too much energy? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.