The risks of environmental impact because of Bitcoin mining have been widely touted, but a recent report indicates that the actual damage from Bitcoin mining may well be far less than that associated with fiat currencies and other industries.
Data centers, gold mining and cash production all consume substantially more energy than Bitcoin mining.
The report indicates that the annual consumption of power from Bitcoin mining is 8.27 terawatt-hours per year, more than Ireland and other small nations. Nevertheless, this number is actually only an eighth of what data centers in the US consume annually, and the global production of fiat currencies stands at 11 terawatt-hours per year.
Gold mining burns a staggering 132 terawatt-hours per year. What’s more, these numbers don’t even include the massive amount spent on vaults, banks, security systems and more to keep the physical cash and precious metal safe.
FUD
The environmental impact of Bitcoin mining has been widely touted, particularly by those who believe it to be a non-legitimate currency, but it appears these accusations are more fear, uncertainty and doubt (FUD), rather than actual facts.
These reports do not take into consideration the actual costs of other types of value production, all of which consume resources. In point of fact, Bitcoin consumes less energy than its non-digital equivalents