A report on bitcoin mining, written by pro-bitcoin, self-proclaimed philanthropist Daniel Batten, claims that bitcoin could be a zero-emissions network.
The report draws on data from the Bitcoin Mining Council to understand the impact of low-carbon energy sources on the overall carbon footprint of Bitcoin (BTC). After investigating and extrapolating the results, he then claims to “predict when the entire Bitcoin network will become a zero emissions network.”
But how does the network become carbon neutral? In short, by burning, to mine bitcoin, methane that would otherwise have leaked into the atmosphere. The study shows that this process, which is already taking place worldwide, reduces network emissions by 63%.
This means that the 1.57% of the Bitcoin network that uses negative carbon sources has a -4.2% impact on the carbon intensity of the Bitcoin network.”
The study uses data from various BTC miners using flare gas, including Crusoe Energy in Colorado, Jai Energy in Wyoming, and Arthur Mining in Brazil. She also talks about miners using combustion gases from organic waste – such as those in Slovakia – to demonstrate how Bitcoin mining can have a positive impact on the environment by avoiding the emission of harmful methane gas.
As central bankers and the mainstream media continue to criticize the energy-intensive bitcoin mining process, it appears that mining may be a viable solution to reducing emissions. According to a United Nations report, “methane reduction is the most powerful lever we have to slow climate change over the next 25 years”. By eliminating gas flaring or biogas emissions from animal waste, bitcoin miners around the world are trying to achieve zero emissions.
Cointelegraph reporter Joe Hall interviewed a farmer from Northern Ireland who recently started experimenting with Bitcoin mining. Owen, the farmer, told Cointelegraph that “Bitcoin mining makes sense using biogas from agricultural waste that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere. »
Owen is partnered with Scilling Digital Mining, an Irish company that researches renewable energy for use in bitcoin mining. In a nod to the adoption of this technology in Ireland, Mark Morton, Managing Director of Schilling, told Cointelegraph:
“Daniel [Batten] it did a great job of showing the methane capture potential of bitcoin mining. The applause for these unsuspecting energy consumers is just beginning, and Irish farmers could be the next big adopters of this amazing technology. »
Morton added that “Bitcoin mining will be a catalyst for widespread adoption of small-scale, off-grid anaerobic digestion, resulting in less agricultural waste, a more decentralized grid hash rate, and reduced emissions.” agricultural. Agriculture is responsible for a third of greenhouse gas emissions in Ireland, so capturing waste gas from agriculture could not only clean up the polluting farming industry, but also generate additional income to BTC mining.
Also read: The banking sector consumes 56 times more energy than bitcoin: Valuechain report
Batten, the author of the report, is an environmentalist who spends his time researching bitcoin and energy consumption. Before supporting the environment through bitcoin mining, Batten was a philanthropist and venture capitalist.
In a remote presentation at Surfin’ Bitcoin over the weekend, he explained why Bitcoin mining has become “the most important mission.” In this presentation, he made the case for methane capture and emphasized the urgency of climate change.
