Crypto and the Environment: What Is Green Crypto Mining?
The Bitcoin network currently uses more energy each year than the entire country of Finland.
One of the largest energy-consuming activities on this blockchain is Bitcoin mining. Despite the profits that come with it, there are some major concerns, and many such people are looking towards green crypto mining as a potential solution.
To find out more about what green crypto mining is, keep reading.
The Rise of Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin was the world’s first cryptocurrency, and it was created in 2010 with a price of $0.0008. At the time of writing, a single coin is now worth over $42,000. This incredible growth has led to huge advancements in the world of crypto, but some of these have created some significant issues.
Over the years, thousands of other cryptocurrencies have been created, and their global use has exploded. There are many ways people can make money with crypto, and one of the most popular yet most controversial is crypto mining.
What Is Crypto Mining?
Most blockchains use Proof-of-Work (PoW) mechanisms to validate transactions. This uses a lot of energy, and crypto mining helps with this.
Any transaction needs to be established across the distributed database. This must be over 50% for Bitcoin but varies between blockchains.
Mining involves using processing power to solve complex equations which process transactions. In return for lending this power to the blockchain, the miner receives more crypto in return. Processors compete for this, so the most powerful ones benefit the most from mining.
Energy Concerns
One of the main issues with crypto mining is that it uses a huge amount of energy. As the popularity of cryptocurrencies has increased over the last decade, so too have the emissions created from crypto mining.
As the most popular cryptocurrency in the world, Bitcoin mining uses the most energy. By the end of 2021, Bitcoin mining accounted for around 0.5% of the world’s electricity consumption (10 times more than it did in 2016).
This issue has not gone unnoticed, and several crypto mining companies have started looking towards solutions to implement sustainable crypto mining.
Green Crypto Mining
As crypto mining uses electricity, most of the power consumed comes from fossil fuels. With that being said, it is also possible for a portion of this power to come from sustainable resources.
Almost a third of the energy used by crypto miners comes from renewable sources. More miners are turning to green energy crypto mining as it is better for the environment and can also help them increase their profits.
While this is a step in the right direction, it’s a long way from what you might call ‘clean crypto.’ Quote, Colo is dedicated to helping in this area. They operate a referral service to partner with green Bitcoin mining companies.
If you’re interested in mining Bitcoin in an eco-friendly way, head over to the Quote Colo website and take a look at their services.
The Future of Green Crypto Mining
The world is quickly becoming more conscious of energy use and pollution caused by emissions. It is safe to say that with time more people and companies will turn towards green crypto mining for the benefits it brings.
For more crypto-related articles, check out some of our other blog posts.