Is mining really a danger to the ecosystem?

Le cryptocurrency have been the subject of close discussion for years now, enough to divide public opinion into two fiercely opposed parties. On the one hand, those who believe that they can not only constitute a great way to make online transactions safer and faster, but also an element capable of facilitating the financial inclusion of those who do not currently possess such tools. On the other side of the barricade, instead, there are those who consider Bitcoin and its sisters a real scam, as well as a possible tool for the criminal economy.
In the background, however, another crucial theme connected to digital assets remains, namely that of theirs sustainability from an environmental point of view. A problem that should instead be tackled in an organic way, precisely in light of the alarming news that arrives in this regard.

Does mining contribute to global warming?

In the last few months, the topic of the political discussion has returned to the theme of global warming. A discussion of current events after the climate strike promoted by Greta Thunberg, precisely in order to denounce the danger of a way of life that is rapidly bringing the planet to a point of no return.
From this point of view, the problem represented by the cryptocurrencies from a financial point of view, or their attack on the monetary status quo, is destined to leave the field to that of a much wider scope linked to the fact that it is precisely processes related to the creation of virtual currencies can turn into an attack of no small importance to the environment. In fact, mining entails very high energy demands, as those who are dedicated to the activity know well.

The study of the University of Hawaii

To remember the energy wastefulness of mining has recently been one study of the University of Hawaii which was published in the scientific journal Nature Climate Change. According to the researchers who drafted it, by 2033 the Bitcoin extraction activities and the now thousands of virtual uniforms that crowd the sector panorama, could raise the global temperature by two degrees Celsius. If the study uses the conditional it is only due to the fact that it is still not possible to know if cryptocurrencies can spread with the same speed as other technologies. Due to this contribution, the limits set internationally by theagreement in Paris they could be broken, wasting years and years of discussions at the highest levels.

Mining is proving to be a real water pump

To understand the relevance of the problem, it is necessary to remember as a second one Arvind Narayanan, Computer Science expert at Princeton University, the production of Bitcoins and other virtual currencies is increasingly energy-intensive, so much so that by now 1% of world electricity production would be used for this purpose.
A figure also confirmed by the Digiconomist Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index, according to which the production of virtual coins involves a consumption of electricity greater than that of most of the individual nations of the world. Also based on this report, a single Bitcoin transaction would involve the use of a sufficient amount of electricity to power 10 US homes.