Every Bitcoin transaction generates over 200 grams of electronic waste

In order to achieve the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, almost all nations still have to do a lot. In addition to the expansion of renewable energies, avoiding waste is also an essential point. But in the last few years a new type of payment and financial investment has taken hold: crypto currencies.

Since then, Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital currencies have been on everyone’s lips. The “production” of these digital coins is mostly a nightmare for the environment and other people. Because in addition to the high power consumption, so-called miners also regularly buy empty the market for graphics cards. The few advantages are therefore offset by many disadvantages.

A new analysis by the Danish Central Bank and MIT now show another aspect. Because when trading digital coins there is also electronic waste. The reason are so-called ASIC chips, which are used to secure the Bitcoin network. These chips are only used for this purpose, so as soon as an upgrade to new hardware is made, they usually end up on the trash.

As a result, the chips end up in the bin after just 1.29 years on average. The reason is that mining the currency has to pay off and therefore more and more energy-saving hardware is used. Every year, 30.7 kilotons of electronic waste are generated in this way; the network processed 112.5 million transactions in 2020.

If you calculate that down to a single transaction, then per transaction there is 272 grams of electronic waste. If you compare this with everyday devices, two iPhone 12 Mini are thrown away with every transaction. Therefore, the process faces major challenges when it comes to the environment and sustainability. One solution could be to switch to other concepts (for example “Proof of Stake”), but it is unclear whether and when a change will take place.

Own opinion:

In my opinion, cryptocurrencies are one of the worst inventions of modern times. The calculation requires an incredible amount of electricity, at the same time the value fluctuates extremely, and digital coins are probably never widely accepted in everyday life. The industry is facing major problems, so it remains to be seen how it will react and find solutions to its problems.

Via The Guardian