Despite many prophecies of doom, Bitcoin mining has become more and more sustainable over the past year, as a report by the Bitcoin Mining Council shows.
Bitcoin mining has continued to become more sustainable despite many accusations of contributing to climate change. This emerges from a recent report by the Bitcoin Mining Council (BMC) . It states that electricity consumption from sustainable sources of Bitcoin increased by almost 59 percentage points between the first and fourth quarters of 2021. While it was 36 percent at the beginning of the year, the proportion is now 58.5 percent. The report defines “sustainable electricity” as electricity generated from hydro, wind, solar, nuclear or geothermal sources. In other words, it refers to clean, renewable energy technologies.
The BMC, which includes 36 bitcoin mining organizations, said the board’s companies recorded a sustainability rate of 66.1 percent in 2021. The 36 member companies account for 46 percent of the global Bitcoin hashrate.
According to the results of the Bitcoin Mining Council, Bitcoin mining consumes a total of 220 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity worldwide. This represents an increase of 17 percent compared to October 2021, when the previous report was published. This energy consumption corresponds to 0.14 percent of the total energy production in the world.
Mining hardware just keeps getting better
Another factor contributing to Bitcoin’s sustainability is improved mining equipment. Over the years, mining hardware manufacturers have focused on devices that use less energy. Their operators – in particular, of course, members of the Bitcoin Mining Council – have increasingly committed themselves to reducing the CO₂ footprint. More importantly, overall bitcoin hashrate has since increased from 140 EH/s to 192 EH/s — a 37 percent increase.
This fact is all the more remarkable when you consider that Bitcoin prices are currently tending to go in the opposite direction. One might think: The miners are bullish .
