Bitcoin mining farms could push global temperatures up 2C by 2033

Huge farms of computers used to mine Bitcoin produce the same amount of carbon dioxide as every car in the UK combined (and they could push global temperatures up 2C by 2033)

  • Mining for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin uses up huge amounts of electricity
  • Large banks of computers crunch numbers day and night to create new coins
  • New research warns that the practice produces catastrophic amounts of CO2
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Huge farms of computers used to mine Bitcoin produce the same amount of carbon dioxide per year as every car in the UK combined, warns a new study.

They could produce enough greenhouse gases to raise global temperatures 2C (3.6F) within the next 15 years.

This level of warming is forecast to bring catastrophic droughts, flooding and storms to regions across the globe by scientists.

Bitcoins are generated using a free computer program to solve complex mathematical problems – a process known as mining. 

Creating Bitcoins requires huge amounts of computing power and energy but in the rush to get rich its environmental impact has not been addressed by miners, scientists behind the new study said.

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Pictured are two technicians inspecting processors at a Bitcoin farm in Quebec, Canada. Scientists have warned so-called Bitfarms produce the same amount of carbon dioxide as every car in the UK combined

Experts at the University of Hawaii at Manoa analysed emissions information across several stages of the Bitcoin mining chain. 

Last year alone mining and spending the electronic cash emitted 69 million metric tons of CO2, researchers found.

The UK’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders estimated the UK car fleet emitted 69.7 MtCO2e (Metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent) in 2016. 

Study Lead author Dr Camilo Mora said: ‘We cannot predict the future of Bitcoin, but if implemented at a rate even close to the slowest pace at which other technologies have been incorporated, it will spell very bad news for climate change.

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‘With the ever-growing devastation created by hazardous climate conditions, humanity is coming to terms with the fact that climate change is as real and personal as it can be.

‘Clearly, any further development of cryptocurrencies should critically aim to reduce electricity demand, if the potentially devastating consequences of 2°C of global warming are to be avoided.’ 

Purchasing with bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies, which are forms of currency that exist digitally through encryption, requires large amounts of electricity.

Bitcoin purchases create transactions that are recorded and processed by a group of individuals referred to as miners.

They group every Bitcoin transaction made during a specific timeframe into a block. Blocks are then added to the chain, which is the public ledger.


Creating Bitcoins requires huge amounts of computing power and energy but in the rush to get rich its environmental impact has not been addressed by miners, scientists behind the new study said (stock image)

The verification process by miners, who compete to decipher a computationally demanding proof-of-work in exchange for bitcoins, uses up a lot of energy.

The researchers analysed information such as the power efficiency of computers used by Bitcoin mining, the geographic location of the miners who likely computed the Bitcoin, and the CO2 emissions of producing electricity in those countries.

They also studied how other technologies have been adopted by society, and created scenarios to estimate the cumulative emissions of Bitcoin should it grow at the rate that other technologies have been incorporated.

If Bitcoin is incorporated, even at the slowest rate at which other technologies have been incorporated, its cumulative emissions will be enough to warm the planet above 2C (3.6F) by 2033.

If incorporated at the average rate of other technologies, it is closer to 16 years.

Co-author Katie Taladay said: ‘Currently, the emissions from transportation, housing and food are considered the main contributors to ongoing climate change.

‘This research illustrates that Bitcoin should be added to this list.’

WHAT IS A BITCOIN? A LOOK AT THE DIGITAL CURRENCY

What is a Bitcoin?   

Bitcoin is what is referred to  as a ‘crypto-currency.’ 

It is the internet’s version of money – a unique pieces of digital property that can be transferred from one person to another.

Bitcoins are generated by using an open-source computer program to solve complex math problems. This process is known as mining.  

Each Bitcoin has it’s own unique fingerprint and is defined by a public address and a private key – or strings of numbers and letters that give each a specific identity.

They are also characterized by their position in a public database of all Bitcoin transactions known as the blockchain. 

The blockchain is maintained by a distributed network of computers around the world.

Because Bitcoins allow people to trade money without a third party getting involved, they have become popular with libertarians as well as technophiles, speculators — and criminals.

Where do Bitcoins come from?

People create Bitcoins through mining.

Mining is the process of solving complex math problems using computers running Bitcoin software.

These mining puzzles get increasingly harder as more Bitcoins enter circulation.

The rewards are cut in half at regular intervals due to a deliberate slowdown in the rate at which new Bitcoins enter circulation. 

Who’s behind the currency?

Bitcoin was launched in 2009 by a person or group of people operating under the name Satoshi Nakamoto and then adopted by a small clutch of enthusiasts.

Nakamoto dropped off the map as Bitcoin began to attract widespread attention, but proponents say that doesn’t matter: the currency obeys its own, internal logic.

Dr Craig Wright was suspected as the creator following a report by Wired last year and he has now confirmed his identity as the cryptocurrency’s founder.  

What’s a bitcoin worth?

Like any other currency, Bitcoins are only worth as much as you and your counterpart want them to be. 


Bitcoins are lines of computer code that are digitally signed each time they travel from one owner to the next. Physical coin used as an illustration

In its early days, boosters swapped Bitcoins back and forth for minor favours or just as a game. 

One website even gave them away for free. 

As the market matured, the value of each Bitcoin grew.

Is the currency widely used?

That’s debatable.

Businesses ranging from blogging platform WordPress to retailer Overstock have jumped on the Bitcoin bandwagon amid a flurry of media coverage, but it’s not clear whether the currency has really taken off. 

On the one hand, leading Bitcoin payment processor BitPay works with more than 20,000 businesses – roughly five times more than it did last year. 

On the other, the total number of Bitcoin transactions has stayed roughly constant at between 60,000 and 70,000 per day over the same period, according to Bitcoin wallet site blockchain.info.

Is Bitcoin particularly vulnerable to counterfeiting?

The Bitcoin network works by harnessing individuals’ greed for the collective good. 

A network of tech-savvy users called miners keep the system honest by pouring their computing power into a blockchain, a global running tally of every bitcoin transaction. 

The blockchain prevents rogues from spending the same bitcoin twice, and the miners are rewarded for their efforts by being gifted with the occasional Bitcoin. 

As long as miners keep the blockchain secure, counterfeiting shouldn’t be an issue.

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