Topic: Is Bitcoin Mining Really Causing Environmental Damage? Maybe not that much... - page 2. (Read 1997 times)
October 17, 2018, 08:24:30 AM
I do not think this is true. Bitcoin cannot harm ecology. At least against the background of huge production lines. This is ridiculous))
October 16, 2018, 04:46:48 PM
I personally don't believe Bitcoin mining causes any special environmental damage. It uses regular electricity just like every other electrical appliances. If the source of the power is clean energy e.g solar, then there will be no damage whatsoever to the environment.
October 16, 2018, 03:15:38 PM
Compared to other sources of pollution, bitcoin seems quite harmless. The more that its good qualities far exceed the potential harms that it can inflict. Therefore, I do not consider this a serious problem for bitcoin.
October 16, 2018, 02:52:47 PM
It seems to me that bitcoin will not make the ecological situation in our world worse. There are much more dangerous factors - factories, the release of debris into the oceans, space debris and so on. And the production of bitkin in this whole variety of environmental harm-a drop in the sea.
October 16, 2018, 02:41:16 PM
If it really causes some kind of damage to the environment, this harm is negligible. Moreover, for more useful bitcoin mining, you can use modern alternative methods of electricity production - windmills. It all depends on who is engaged in mining. The extraction of bitkin can really be made more environmentally friendly, if you want.
October 16, 2018, 02:28:47 PM
I think that the view that bitcoin impact on environmental pollution is another ploy of skeptics. Look at the state of the world now. Do you really think that bitcoin is to blame for all environmental problems, or it can somehow aggravate the situation? No.
October 16, 2018, 04:23:15 AM
Bitcoin is now widely used and popular. Bitcoin demand can increase as more production increases. But it will not do any harm to the environment. Because the irrigation used here is environmentally friendly.
October 16, 2018, 03:54:49 AM
I am not buying it. There are more industry that affect the environment compared to mining Bitcoin. Mining gold, metals and rocks are way more distractive in the environment. Even bank transactions consume more electricity than mining Bitcoin.
October 15, 2018, 05:37:49 AM
I believe the thing that makes Bitcoin environment friendly is its limited use and interest compared to banks. But the interest in banks could go down when there will be more corrupt people. And any new market leader in crypto could devalue, because when it tries to be regulated, people might see the coin as corrupt. Then in some way nothing stops crypto from taking more energy.
I mean, other things in life that consume energy seem to have an upper limit in theory. I do not expect the world to produce less steel for the same amount of energy in future. You may want more steel, IT infrastructure and services or anything. But there is an end because you need at least space. I don't see an end like this for hashrate growth. There is a coin limit in the Bitcoin design, but why would anyone be stopped from making use of a new coin with the same characteristicts like Bitcoin in the mining phase. There will probably be some economic cycle and hashrate growth will go on.
I mean, other things in life that consume energy seem to have an upper limit in theory. I do not expect the world to produce less steel for the same amount of energy in future. You may want more steel, IT infrastructure and services or anything. But there is an end because you need at least space. I don't see an end like this for hashrate growth. There is a coin limit in the Bitcoin design, but why would anyone be stopped from making use of a new coin with the same characteristicts like Bitcoin in the mining phase. There will probably be some economic cycle and hashrate growth will go on.
October 14, 2018, 03:19:09 PM
Only when the involved parties utilise eco-friendly power generation can we truly say it doesn't contribute to environmental damage. Mining is notoriously known to consume a whole lot of energy compared to the appliances we use at home so they basically contribute in the generation of more electricity which is majorly from fossil fuels, a known contributor to global warming.
October 14, 2018, 01:50:09 PM
Absolutely no. Mining requires electricity, like many electrical appliances of our time. If there is harm, it is equal to the harm caused by electrical appliances in the house combined: refrigerator, microwave, TV, computer, etc.
October 06, 2018, 06:32:08 AM
Depends on how you receive electricity, if through Hydroelectric power plants , using solar or wind batteries that drive, but if using heat power station, causing damage.
October 05, 2018, 04:47:18 PM
Of course (3) !!! Because like I was saying (the third time already) there is no spare capacity. Just like in the oil and gas industry. Only a few countries can afford 10% increase even if they want to produce more, there are simply no drilled wells and it takes months to make them.
Just like chips are not printed at home and you need to wait for TMSC to produce another batch.
Just like chips are not printed at home and you need to wait for TMSC to produce another batch.
water and oil are not the same. once you use oil its gone. when water goes through a turbine. water still exists. thus can be reused.
and if reservoir one has a capacity of 365 million litres. reservoir two doesnt need to be 365million litres.
infact it doesnt even need to be 1 million litres to catch a day of R1's daily run off to double a day.
all it needs is a small narrow run-through that water flows to create pressure (you know make the tip of a hosepipe smaller than its beginning so that the pressure rises.
as you say its more about price. and if you done some maths. china's production is multiple percent above demand. and that excess goes to waste unused, unpaid for. so power stations are loving that bitcoin farms are buying the excess.
the power stations make profit. and now make more. they could use it to create extra production. but demand is not there to push/sway them into using the many many many techniques to re-use water after its gone through a dam.
and yes there are many ways. that dont need to rely on depth/height/gravity
EG
lets say a steel turbine is heavy and needs Xpsi pressure to move it. to then spin a electro magnet of 100 coils.
your mindset thinks Y water is needed and Z height for gravity to produce Xpsi.
yet.. if you shrink the nosel of the water pipe. = less water needed to produce same pressure
yet.. if you use a lighter material for the turbine = less pressure needed = less watr needed
yet.. if you add more coils in the electro magnet = less water needed
EG make the turbine lighter and electromagnet bigger then water becomes less of the issue
October 05, 2018, 04:03:08 PM
On some side, Yes , because the extraction of Bitcoin , go resources, these resources we draw from mother earth ! But it is not so global as emissions from cars and etc, it is necessary to begin to change to mankind instead of development ! If every a will throw out garbage where it is necessary and not in the forest or river that is!
October 05, 2018, 09:51:29 AM
There is this widespread notion that Bitcoin mining is detrimental to the environment, because of all the electricity it consumes. At a quick superficial glance, it seems logical. But in reality, it is not exactly the case.
Who mines Bitcoin and what kind of electricity is used for Bitcoin mining?
Currently, China accounts for about 71% of the mining hash power in the world. The mining farms are based in Western China. But why there?
Hydro power plants have been created in the past for the production of aluminium. Electricity is 60% of the cost to aluminium production through smelting. The aluminium market is oversaturated for years now and China, being a top producer, has cut the production. So they have a huge surplus of hydro energy that is not utilized. For simplicity, imagine a hydro power plant in the fields, surrounded by nothing else. And hydro energy is clean energy. It doesn’t kill trees.
However, the technological infrastructure for transporting the energy to regions that actually need it, is lacking. This overcapacity of energy can’t just be sent to China’s bustling urban centers. Actually it can, but electricity will have to travel long distances, which equals huge losses. Therefore, it would be more economical for a power consumer to be closer to the source of the power. This is where the mining farms and their warehouses have been built. Right next to the close-to-useless hydro power plants. So the majority of miners are using failed energy projects and not investing in new ones.
In order to mine Bitcoin, all you need is mining hardware, internet connection and a simple software and now the unutilized energy is used towards creating a decentralized blockchain system. Unused clean hydro energy is entering the global economy. This is the real mining! At the core of it, we have a Chinese river allowing a rural farmer in Africa get paid for the cotton he produces through the Bitcoin network. The Chinese rivers help a Filipino immigrant in USA to send his payroll to his relatives in the Philippines for cents of a dollar, rather than for a 40% commission fee via Western Union.
But Bitmain and the other pools are making so much money out of it. Is it fair?
Well, gold diggers and oil rigs are also making tons of money. Is it fair? Traditionally, the resource mining business has always been one of the most lucrative. It is at the top of the supply chain. In order for us to go to a gas station and fuel our car tank, someone had to drill that oil first. Gas has value for us as end users. We travel faster than on horses. In order for the gas station to make profit on retail prices, they need to buy that gas from someone first and so on. There is value for everyone in the chain, provided that the product or resource is actually needed.
The value exchange is pretty simple
Unutilized clean energy coming from rivers that doesn’t pollute the air on one hand. And the maintaining of a global decentralized payment system on the other.
So the real question is: “Is a decentralized, open, alternative, state-free monetary system needed?” For the average citizen in a developed country, it may still not be. But for billions underbanked that is life-changing.
A system that allows for 24/7 payments with no borders and close to zero fees. An alternative system to fiat money, that allows people in countries like Venezuela to protect their money and assets in rough times. A system that provides banking for billions in regions where there is no banks.
Conclusion
Unutilized clean hydro energy is being transformed into a global, borderless, open, decentralized, alternative financial system. The air is not being polluted. But the annual profits of banks are! And they will keep pondering how detrimental Bitcoin mining for humanity is. Is this the truth? Decide for yourself.
I would be happy to hear your thoughts on the subject...
Whenever a new technology has introduced in the market, also it receives the two responses that is one group is in the favour of bitcoin and other in the against of it and the same is happening now the most of the population is in the favour of bitcoin and a small group of people are in against of bitcoin and this is the rumours spread by them that in coming decade bitcoin will use twice the amount of electricity as use by the entire world currently and I think this news is practically impossible. Who mines Bitcoin and what kind of electricity is used for Bitcoin mining?
Currently, China accounts for about 71% of the mining hash power in the world. The mining farms are based in Western China. But why there?
Hydro power plants have been created in the past for the production of aluminium. Electricity is 60% of the cost to aluminium production through smelting. The aluminium market is oversaturated for years now and China, being a top producer, has cut the production. So they have a huge surplus of hydro energy that is not utilized. For simplicity, imagine a hydro power plant in the fields, surrounded by nothing else. And hydro energy is clean energy. It doesn’t kill trees.
However, the technological infrastructure for transporting the energy to regions that actually need it, is lacking. This overcapacity of energy can’t just be sent to China’s bustling urban centers. Actually it can, but electricity will have to travel long distances, which equals huge losses. Therefore, it would be more economical for a power consumer to be closer to the source of the power. This is where the mining farms and their warehouses have been built. Right next to the close-to-useless hydro power plants. So the majority of miners are using failed energy projects and not investing in new ones.
In order to mine Bitcoin, all you need is mining hardware, internet connection and a simple software and now the unutilized energy is used towards creating a decentralized blockchain system. Unused clean hydro energy is entering the global economy. This is the real mining! At the core of it, we have a Chinese river allowing a rural farmer in Africa get paid for the cotton he produces through the Bitcoin network. The Chinese rivers help a Filipino immigrant in USA to send his payroll to his relatives in the Philippines for cents of a dollar, rather than for a 40% commission fee via Western Union.
But Bitmain and the other pools are making so much money out of it. Is it fair?
Well, gold diggers and oil rigs are also making tons of money. Is it fair? Traditionally, the resource mining business has always been one of the most lucrative. It is at the top of the supply chain. In order for us to go to a gas station and fuel our car tank, someone had to drill that oil first. Gas has value for us as end users. We travel faster than on horses. In order for the gas station to make profit on retail prices, they need to buy that gas from someone first and so on. There is value for everyone in the chain, provided that the product or resource is actually needed.
The value exchange is pretty simple
Unutilized clean energy coming from rivers that doesn’t pollute the air on one hand. And the maintaining of a global decentralized payment system on the other.
So the real question is: “Is a decentralized, open, alternative, state-free monetary system needed?” For the average citizen in a developed country, it may still not be. But for billions underbanked that is life-changing.
A system that allows for 24/7 payments with no borders and close to zero fees. An alternative system to fiat money, that allows people in countries like Venezuela to protect their money and assets in rough times. A system that provides banking for billions in regions where there is no banks.
Conclusion
Unutilized clean hydro energy is being transformed into a global, borderless, open, decentralized, alternative financial system. The air is not being polluted. But the annual profits of banks are! And they will keep pondering how detrimental Bitcoin mining for humanity is. Is this the truth? Decide for yourself.
I would be happy to hear your thoughts on the subject...
October 03, 2018, 02:46:44 AM
Consumption is the reason why it is difficult to engage in bitcoin mining in most developing countries because their energy supply is ineffective and generates electricity at very high costs. For one, all that energy is turned into heat, so it can be used for heating (panting). Thus, some or most of the energy consumed by bitcoin extraction will not come as a surplus but as a shift. For instance, it would be interesting to see something that the security level for a transaction is proportional to its value. It only consumes energy.
September 29, 2018, 11:55:55 PM
There will always be a negative natural effect in any lucrative future. The power consumed by bitcoin extraction is one of the effects. Therefore, one of the important things to consider in bitcoin mining is the energy generating system. Let's not forget that the financial industry, including the last segment of e-money, will also be using energy for example. Thus, some or most of the energy consumed by bitcoin extraction will not come as a surplus but as a shift. For instance, it would be interesting to see something that the security level for a transaction is proportional to its value.
September 28, 2018, 08:39:22 AM
Don't know what some people are worried about, the following industries have been allowed to ruin the world and environment in far worse ways for decades or even longer.
Quote
1 ULAB
2 Mining and Ore Processing
3 Lead Smelting
4 Tanneries
5 ASGM
6 Industrial Dumpsites
7 Industrial Estates
8 Chemical Manufacturing
9 Product Manufacturing
10 Dye Industry
2 Mining and Ore Processing
3 Lead Smelting
4 Tanneries
5 ASGM
6 Industrial Dumpsites
7 Industrial Estates
8 Chemical Manufacturing
9 Product Manufacturing
10 Dye Industry
September 28, 2018, 08:32:21 AM
The high cost involved in mining bitcoin is really surprising to me. This will lead to the establishment of more planets.The activities of burning high volumes of fossil fuel to drive some of these plants lead to environmental pollution. Now too many pollutions have to lead to global warming and change in the weather pattern nowadays. These negative implications affect the rainfall pattern and crops plantations.
September 28, 2018, 12:05:09 AM
Actually, almost everything we use/consume is killing the nature, but we can't stop using all the technologies and go back to the dark age, can we? Yes, Hydro Electricity is a solution, Wind Turbines and Solar can be other means, too.
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