Mining Bitcoins Using Clean Energy Has the Potential to Change the World
By Space Coast Daily // October 22, 2021
Although the energy consumption of bitcoin mining is exaggerated on many occasions, there is still a compelling case for using renewable energy sources. What if you could replace the internal combustion engine with a renewable battery-powered motor just twelve years after its first invention?
We might avoid the problem of controlling greenhouse gas emissions entirely. Despite all of the advantages that the internal combustion engine has provided humanity, its environmental repercussions are not one of those benefits.
According to experts, in its twelfth year of existence, Bitcoin (BTC), an equally powerful technology, is being adopted at an unprecedented rate. Before we move further in our guide, please register yourself on the Bitcoin Up and Improve your trading skills that can drive economic growth.
The current consensus among Bitcoin thought leaders is that the cryptocurrency’s energy consumption “is not an issue.” 2 However, despite its increasing popularity, Bitcoin remains at the periphery for most people. As it develops, its energy use, among other things, will be subjected to further closer examination.
Operating the Bitcoin network worldwide consumes as much energy as Washington state, which equates to less than one-half of one% of total global energy consumption. However, to spur a movement toward more environmentally friendly bitcoin mining, more people must come to understand why bitcoin is so important.
Why Bitcoin Is Important
It is essential to recognize that bitcoin is a technical innovation: as the “native currency of the computer,” bitcoin allows for the first time the transfer of value to take place anywhere on the globe without the involvement of a third-party intermediary. Over 2 billion people on the planet are “unbanked,” meaning they do not have access to the financial system that we take for granted in the developed world.
Bitcoin provides these individuals with the ability to preserve and manage the value of their hard-earned assets. Take into consideration how many refugees have benefited from this capacity throughout history. It is one of the numerous ways Bitcoin is disruptive, and it is only one example of this.
Additionally, the most significant aspect of bitcoin is that it is a fully deflationary means of exchange: there will only ever be 21 million Bitcoin in existence.
Because more than 40 % of all of the United States dollars ever printed have been produced in only the past 18 months, other nations note the effect that a globe saturated with dollars has on their buying power. For this reason, bitcoin’s capacity to function as “digital gold” would be beneficial to anybody who chooses to hold value in it, especially in the face of current governments’ penchant for money-printing.
There Are Constant Narratives. It Is Critical to Maintaining Control of The Narrative Around Bitcoin
When some people hear the term “bitcoin,” individuals who are unfamiliar with the currency may make statements such as “it’s a fraud,” “it’s a Ponzi scheme,” or “it’s utilized by criminals,” among other things. The narrative around bitcoin is shifting across the world.
The adoption of bitcoin, particularly in the United States, will be pushed by a younger generation keenly aware of their environmental consequences. Suppose this generation becomes concerned about bitcoin’s ecological footprint.
In that case, they may switch to more minor energy-intensive digital currencies or, worse, push the bitcoin community to change to proof-of-stake, which would significantly reduce the utility and security of the Bitcoin network to the rest of the world. Making the statement “bitcoin mining using renewable energy sources” is much superior to stating that “its energy consumption isn’t an issue.”
Because the narrative about Bitcoin’s energy consumption by people outside or on the trimeter of its adoption must not be allowed to reduce its promise8, the story that Bitcoin’s energy consumption is harmful to the environment must not be permitted to hinder its adoption.
Mining For Bitcoin Requires Energy
Mining bitcoin (which entails utilizing a specialized computer to solve a cryptographic problem) needs energy, much like mining for any other resource. Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of bitcoin, compared mining bitcoin to that of a gold mine.
“Gold mining is a waste, but outweighs the waste by the benefit of having gold accessible as a means of trade,” says a gold mining expert.
At the moment, in mid-September 2021, it costs $12,500 to mine one block of bitcoin, which is worth little more than $312,500 at the current exchange rate. It is a beneficial characteristic since the amount of work and energy spent reflects the value of bitcoin, just as it does with other rare commodities such as gold and silver.
And only a tiny percentage of the roughly 19 million bitcoins produced to date were drilled at a cost or with an energy consumption comparable to this.
