For partreatment of Bitcoin consumes about seven gigawatts per year, according to a new tool from the University of Cambridge's Center for Alternative Economics, called the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index, or simply CBECI.
This energy is a little more than what the whole of Switzerland uses, according to CBECI. This number is admittedly very difficult to visualize, which is why the researchers made some comparisons.
It is equal to the 0,21% of the global offer. It is the amount of electricity produced by seven nuclear power plants, Dungeness, according with the BBC.
But does all this energy use contribute to change of the climate? In other words… Is Bitcoin Boiling the Oceans?
One study estimates that the electricity used to generate Bitcoin produces about 22 million CO2 emissions a year - a level somewhere between those generated by Jordan and Sri Lanka or almost as much as Kansas City in the US.
The authors of the study, published in the journal Joule in June, say that Bitcoin requires "huge" amounts of electricity to validate transactions through the decentralized protocol, which translates into "significant levels of carbon emissions".
Our approach to Bitcoin's carbon footprint highlights the need to address the external environmental impacts resulting from cryprobes.
Joule's researchers point out that their work underscores the need to address the "external environmental impact of cryptocurrencies" and the need for research to assess the cost-benefit relationship for blockchain applications in general.
We do not question the efficiency gains that could be offered by the technology blockchain, in some cases. However, today's discussion focuses only on the expected benefits, and more should be given caution and the cost.
They feel that policy makers should pay more attention to the aspects production of Bitcoin, as global electricity prices do not reflect the future damages caused by today's carbon dioxide emissions.
And Cambridge researchers agree: despite the fact that Bitcoin creates a small part of global emissions, there is no reason to ignore the environmental concerns about Vitcoin's energy consumption.
There are concerns that increasing electricity consumption by Bitcoin may pose a threat to achieving the goals of a sustainable development of the United Nations in the future.
However, current data show that, even in the worst case scenario (mining using coal only), Bitcoin's environmental footprint is currently at best marginal.
