{"id":3079,"date":"2024-04-22T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-04-22T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www-prod.greenpeace.org\/usa\/campaign-updates\/3079\/bitcoins-e-waste-problem-is-hiding-in-plain-sight\/"},"modified":"2024-12-11T15:18:36","modified_gmt":"2024-12-11T15:18:36","slug":"bitcoins-e-waste-problem-is-hiding-in-plain-sight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/usa\/bitcoins-e-waste-problem-is-hiding-in-plain-sight\/","title":{"rendered":"Bitcoin\u2019s E-Waste Problem is Hiding in Plain Sight"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"p4descriptive_paragraph\">As the popularity of Bitcoin mining and investments continues to surge, concerns over its environmental impact are mounting.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large p4featured_image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.googleapis.com\/planet4-usa-stateless\/2024\/11\/74196910-gp0stvtoy_low-res-with-credit-line-800px.jpg\" alt=\"Activists Bring &quot;Skull of Satoshi&quot; to Fidelity\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Art and activism merge in the striking art installation called the Skull of Satoshi, created by art activist Benjamin Von Wong and Greenpeace USA to highlight Bitcoin\u2019s record of climate destruction. The Skull of Satoshi makes its New York debut.This thought-provoking art installation is 11 feet tall and features smoking stacks representing the fossil fuel and coal pollution generated by Bitcoin mining, eyes adorned with bitcoin logos and red lasers, and cables protruding from its neck. The skull is made with electronic waste donated by Unirecycle, representing the millions of computers used to validate Bitcoin transactions, known as mining.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As the popularity of Bitcoin mining and investments continues to surge, concerns over its environmental impact are mounting. The upcoming Bitcoin \u201chalving\u201d event that reduces the Bitcoin awarded to miners will impact the economics of mining Bitcoin. This will likely lead to thousands of new Bitcoin mining computers being purchased while older equipment is <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.coindesk.com\/consensus-magazine\/2024\/04\/08\/6-ways-the-halving-will-impact-bitcoin-mining\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rendered unprofitable<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and discarded as e-waste. The industry already <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S0921344921005103\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">produces large amounts of e-waste<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from specialized computing equipment on top of hefty <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/04\/09\/business\/bitcoin-mining-electricity-pollution.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">energy<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cell.com\/cell-reports-sustainability\/pdf\/S2949-7906(23)00004-6.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">water<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> consumption. The industry needs to take responsibility for these impacts to prevent further harm to the environment and communities.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><b><i>Highlights<\/i><\/b><\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The April 2024 Bitcoin halving incentivizes faster, more powerful mining equipment to maintain profitability in the face of rising energy costs and diminishing returns.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rapid turnover of mining hardware creates large amounts of electronic waste (e-waste) as older, less efficient models are replaced by newer ones and are not recycled or reused.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Transitioning Bitcoin to a new consensus algorithm could dramatically reduce the incentive for specialized mining equipment and the need for large amounts of cheap energy and water.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The competitive nature of Bitcoin mining and tight profit margins for companies incentivize the development of more powerful mining equipment \u2013 called Application-specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs) \u2013 for miners to remain profitable. Since ASICs are highly specialized computers that are built with the sole purpose of guessing numbers to mine Bitcoin, old equipment is discarded and not reused. This turnover of mining equipment stands to be accelerated by the halving. The pursuit of faster, more powerful hardware contributes to the generation of e-waste, posing another environmental challenge that needs to be addressed by the industry.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bitcoin miner\u2019s ability to break even depends highly on the price of Bitcoin to offset their energy and equipment costs. The Bitcoin network was designed so that the complexity of mining would increase when more companies participate, making it more difficult to guess the right solution and win new Bitcoin. Additionally, the rewards were programmed to be <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoin.org\/bitcoin.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">cut in half every four years<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Known as the Bitcoin halving, this process is meant to control Bitcoin\u2019s inflation rate and limit the total lifetime supply of Bitcoin to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/bitcoin.org\/bitcoin.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">21 million coins<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. As a result, participating in Bitcoin mining requires ASIC hardware and access to large amounts of cheap, consistent energy <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.investopedia.com\/tech\/how-does-bitcoin-mining-work\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to participate without losing money<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. When Bitcoin was released in 2009, the reward for mining was 50 Bitcoin\u2013after the fourth halving in April 2024, the reward will be only 3.125 Bitcoin. This creates a turnover of older and slower ASICs for miners to remain competitive and maximize profits.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">E-waste from ASICs is an unreported but already potentially large source of e-waste. As of May 2021, researchers estimated that the entire Bitcoin network <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S0921344921005103\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">generated 30.7 metric kilotons of e-waste<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> per year from ASICs that became unprofitable and obsolete. They also estimated that <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S0921344921005103\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">64.43 metric kilotons of e-waste could be generated annually<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with a higher Bitcoin price based on the production of the most efficient available model when the research was conducted. While the scale of the issue is not clear, there are cases of irresponsible disposal. For example, during a period of low Bitcoin value in 2018, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ccn.com\/bitcoin-miners-are-selling-old-asics-for-scrap-metal-as-price-decline-hastens-obsolescence\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">thousands of ASICs were found to have been discarded<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in China when they were no longer profitable. The amount of this hazardous waste could accelerate post-halving.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_93612\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"width: 310px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-93612 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-usa-stateless\/2024\/11\/6e15f0cb-gp0stvtp5_low-res-with-credit-line-800px.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-93612\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-93612\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Skull of Satoshi, created by art activist Benjamin Von Wong and Greenpeace USA to highlight Bitcoin\u2019s record of climate destruction.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h4><b><i>Hardware Life Cycles<\/i><\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In order to stay profitable when the Bitcoin reward is reduced by half, many miners have <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/crypto.news\/bitcoin-miners-ramp-up-investment-ahead-of-halving-set-new-energy-consumption-record\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">invested<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the newest and most efficient machines. The lifespan of an ASIC is <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/asicmarketplace.com\/blog\/how-to-maximize-your-asic-miner-lifespan\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">estimated to be 5-7 years<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and even up to 10 years before the machine is not functional. But considering when an ASIC becomes unprofitable suggests a different end game. Often, machines become unprofitable <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S0921344921005103\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in as little as 1-2 years<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. After this time, ASICs become too inefficient to be profitable, even if they are still functional. TheMinerMag reports that in 2023, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/pro.theminermag.com\/overview\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">it cost around $10,000-15,000 to mine a single Bitcoin<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Wolfie Zhao, head of research at Blockbridge and author at TheMinerMag, was also quoted as saying that <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.coindesk.com\/business\/2023\/06\/07\/bitcoin-halving-is-coming-and-only-the-most-efficient-miners-will-survive\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">these costs could double by the 2024 halving<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, bringing the production cost to $20,000-$30,000 per bitcoin. Assuming the price of Bitcoin has <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/technology\/what-is-bitcoins-halving-does-it-matter-2024-03-13\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">not dramatically changed<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, such an increase in the cost of Bitcoin mining could force miners to invest in newer, more powerful ASICs to compete.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The turnover of ASICs has become faster over time based on changes in Bitcoin price, demand, incentives, and technological innovations. In anticipation of the halving, Bitmain\u2019s Georgia operation imported<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/theminermag.com\/news\/2024-04-04\/bitmain-s19xp-bitcoin-miner-import\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 5.41 million kilograms<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (almost 6000 US tons) of the newest ASIC machines (Bitmain\u2019s Antminer S19XP) between July 2023 and March 2024. The recent record high price of Bitcoin ($73,798 on March 14, 2024) and industry excitement leading up to new Bitcoin investment products offered by big financial companies like BlackRock and Fidelity, a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sec.gov\/news\/statement\/gensler-statement-spot-bitcoin-011023\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">spot Bitcoin ETP<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, also encouraged profit-seeking miners. For example, major mining companies CleanSpark Inc. and Riot Platforms Inc. reportedly <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/pro.theminermag.com\/overview\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">spent $473 million and $415 million<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, respectively, on updating ASIC machines in preparation for the halving, according to TheMinerMag.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is speculation that the halving could be beneficial to the environmental impacts of Bitcoin because it will reduce energy use, as <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ey.com\/en_ch\/blockchain\/the-bitcoin-halving-explained\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">only the most efficient ASICs will be operating<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. While miners will be driven to use the most efficient machines, there remains competition for cheap electricity. The halving has already spurred some mining companies to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2024-03-23\/bitcoin-halving-spurs-exodus-of-old-us-mining-computers-abroad\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">migrate machines to countries with cheaper electricity prices<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to stay profitable. The price of Bitcoin is also projected to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2023-04-23\/bitcoin-btc-halving-in-2024-spurs-predictions-of-rally-past-50-000\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">increase after the halving<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, potentially offsetting any reduction in energy use due to newer ASICs. The halving may also lead companies to replace and dispose of old machines, driving up e-waste from the industry. Thus, there are unlikely to be any meaningful reductions in GHG emissions to match the scale of Bitcoin\u2019s climate impacts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the price of Bitcoin is low, mining is less profitable, and there is a greater incentive to use the newest and fastest ASICs. This is because the Bitcoin rewards from mining are worth less and companies need to keep operating costs low to make a profit.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the price of Bitcoin is high, mining is more profitable because the Bitcoin rewards have more value. This increases the demand for ASICs as miners are eager to participate in mining, and means older ASIC models may be profitable.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mining operations may hold on to older ASIC models, and run them when it is profitable. Because the mining algorithm becomes more complex when more miners are participating, even these older models can become obsolete quickly.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The overall increase in Bitcoin\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.coindesk.com\/price\/bitcoin\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">price<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wired.com\/story\/bitcoin-price-record-economics\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">hype<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has also incentivized research and manufacturing to create <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.coindesk.com\/business\/2023\/06\/07\/bitcoin-halving-is-coming-and-only-the-most-efficient-miners-will-survive\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">more efficient machines<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> quickly.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many expect that the 2024 halving will <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/digital-assets\/2024\/04\/01\/huge-new-crypto-halving-price-data-reveals-why-april-could-be-bitcoins-biggest-ever-month\/?sh=3968ebdf3e1e\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">lead Bitcoin price<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to grow in the weeks leading up to and following the halving, meaning a greater incentive for miners to participate with the most profitable ASIC machines.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The halving will likely mean smaller mining companies go offline or out of business, which also creates e-waste. Meanwhile, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2024\/04\/05\/bitcoin-halving-coming-april\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">large mining companies with lower operation costs can invest in new ASICs<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and potentially discard or <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2024-03-23\/bitcoin-halving-spurs-exodus-of-old-us-mining-computers-abroad\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sell<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> old ones.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The life cycle of ASICs is opaque and difficult to track, but there are serious environmental and social concerns for the industry. Similar to other technology industries, raw materials like critical minerals for computer chips are nonrenewable materials that are essential for ASIC production. Mineral and metal extraction for electronics, especially microchips, has been <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/tcocertified.com\/conflict-minerals\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">connected to human rights abuses<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, including child labor and warfare, and is <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2021\/sep\/18\/semiconductor-silicon-chips-carbon-footprint-climate\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">environmentally destructive<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Electronics manufacturing has also been linked to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/internethealthreport.org\/2019\/technologys-inhumane-underbelly\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">poor labor conditions and human rights violations<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as industries work to make new products quickly and cheaply.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ASIC manufacturers do not report on the sources of raw materials for production and do not participate in programs that set environmental or labor standards for product life cycles. For example, there are currently no mining manufacturers participating in the Global Electronics Council\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/epeat.net\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which assesses the sustainability of devices from resource extraction to product disposal. There are also no manufacturers with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/tcocertified.com\/tco-certified\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">TCO certification<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which is a sustainability certification for IT products and electronics. Production of semiconductors for ASIC hardware is also energy and water-intensive. TSMC, a major semiconductor producer in Taiwan, estimated that they would <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.taipeitimes.com\/News\/editorials\/archives\/2020\/07\/17\/2003740051\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">use more electricity than the city of Taipei<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in 2022. While TSMC has committed to transitioning to renewable energy by 2040, the industry progress so far has been <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/eastasia\/press\/8087\/greenpeace-response-to-tsmc-sustainability-report-release\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">disappointingly slow<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_93613\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"width: 310px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-93613 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-usa-stateless\/2024\/11\/c28bb898-gp0stvtp2_low-res-with-credit-line-800px.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-93613\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-93613\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Skull of Satoshi, created by art activist Benjamin Von Wong and Greenpeace USA to highlight Bitcoin\u2019s record of climate destruction.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h4><b><i>E-Waste<\/i><\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are no environmental standards or oversight for ASIC machine disposal in the US or abroad. Major manufacturers, such as Bitmain, MicroBT, or Canaan, do not provide recycling or safe disposal programs for customers. Some companies, such as SunnySide Digital, have <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2024-03-23\/bitcoin-halving-spurs-exodus-of-old-us-mining-computers-abroad\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">received and resold unwanted ASICs to miners overseas<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Some mining companies have chosen to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/internet\/528263-bitcoin-mining-hardware-worth-millions-standing-unused.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">turn off mining hardware<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in hopes that the price of Bitcoin becomes favorable enough to turn them back on and profit. Operations that replace machines or supplement their fleet with additional hardware have given no insight into the disposal of obsolete and discarded e-waste.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is little evidence of responsible handling of e-waste by miners. Organizations that track global e-waste flows, such as the United Nations Sustainable Cycles program, lack insight about the industry. Considering that only <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/collections.unu.edu\/view\/UNU:7737\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">17.4% of e-waste is estimated to be recycled globally<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, it\u2019s likely that these single-purpose ASICs are sent to landfills or incinerated when they become unprofitable. This suggests a serious environmental and social challenge beyond the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/358861058_Revisiting_Bitcoin's_carbon_footprint\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">energy<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cell.com\/cell-reports-sustainability\/pdf\/S2949-7906(23)00004-6.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">water<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> demand of the industry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><b><i>Solutions<\/i><\/b><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The rapid obsolescence of ASIC hardware can lead to significant amounts of e-waste. By weight, ASIC machines are primarily generic materials like metal casings and aluminum, which should be straightforward to recycle or even reuse. But toxic chemicals in electronics make even proper recycling of ASICs risky for workers and the environment. Since e-waste from Bitcoin miners is not well-tracked or regulated, there is no certainty that e-waste is being treated as hazardous, staying out of landfills, or being incinerated. Considering the risks of e-waste and the resistance of the industry to make operations more regulated and transparent, recycling and reuse alone won\u2019t be an adequate or safe solution. Mining companies, manufacturers, and financial institutions that offer Bitcoin services, such as ETPs, should engage with existing regulations and environmental standards for hardware life cycles and e-waste to ensure that the industry is working responsibly to reduce impacts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rather than attempting to band-aid over Bitcoin\u2019s threats to the environment, a shift from the current proof-of-work (PoW) to another consensus mechanism is the essential solution for addressing the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S0921344921005103\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">waste<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/04\/09\/business\/bitcoin-mining-electricity-pollution.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">energy<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cell.com\/cell-reports-sustainability\/pdf\/S2949-7906(23)00004-6.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">water<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/03\/us\/bitcoin-arkansas-noise-pollution.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">social<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> impacts of Bitcoin mining. Changing the Bitcoin network to another consensus algorithm eliminates the need for energy-hungry digital mining. For example, the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.investopedia.com\/terms\/p\/proof-stake-pos.asp\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">proof-of-stake<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> algorithm, used by cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, or <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/solana.com\/news\/proof-of-history\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">proof-of-history<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> used by Solana, does not require miners to strongarm others with computational power. Instead, miners can <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/papers.ssrn.com\/sol3\/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3183935\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">participate with nearly any device with Internet access<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Removing the incentives for single-purpose, energy-gobbling machines reduces the opportunities for producing e-waste, as well as reducing energy and water use. Luckily, many consensus mechanisms exist, and there is an opportunity for innovation and collective action to transform Bitcoin\u2019s PoW system.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As the popularity of Bitcoin mining and investments continues to surge, concerns over its environmental impact are mounting. The upcoming Bitcoin \u201chalving\u201d event that reduces the Bitcoin awarded to miners&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":65,"featured_media":8146,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"p4_og_title":"","p4_og_description":"","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"","p4_local_project":"","p4_basket_name":"","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[209],"tags":[50,188],"p4-page-type":[31],"class_list":["post-3079","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bitcoin-campaign","tag-bitcoin","tag-toxics","p4-page-type-campaign-updates"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v23.9 (Yoast SEO v23.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Bitcoin\u2019s E-Waste Problem is Hiding in Plain Sight - Greenpeace<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/usa\/bitcoins-e-waste-problem-is-hiding-in-plain-sight\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bitcoin\u2019s E-Waste Problem is Hiding in Plain Sight\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As the popularity of Bitcoin mining and investments continues to surge, concerns over its environmental impact are mounting. 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