Crypto miners moving to the U.S. and Kazakhstan burn more fossil fuels than expected, study finds.
Contrary to some expectations, Beijing’s crackdown on the crypto mining industry has increased Bitcoin’s carbon emissions, researchers have alleged. Leaving China, miners also left behind its eco-friendly hydropower and are increasingly relying on energy generated by fossil fuels, they claim.Cryptocurrency mining has become a dirtier process after the Chinese government effectively prohibited bitcoin extraction in the People’s Republic, according topublished in the Joule journal.
It has been estimated that Bitcoin produces more than 65 megatons of carbon dioxide annually. The amount exceeds the total carbon emissions of a country like Greece, for example, which in 2019 registered less than 57 megatons of CO2. One of the authors, Alex de Vries, told the BBC:Speaking to Bloomberg, he elaborated that the relocation of mining companies to other countries such as the United States and Kazakhstan has led to a reduction in the use of renewable energy sources.
De Vries is the founder of Digiconomist.net, a platform presenting itself as “dedicated to exposing the unintended consequences of digital trends” and publishing the Bitcoin Electricity Consumption