Cryptocurrency And Environmental Issues

These digital currencies have their own regulations and are created through a process called mining.

The process includes the usage of computers which solve complex mathematical algorithms.

As cryptocurrency is being mined more and more, this algorithm keeps getting longer and more complex—and average computers fail to do.

So, to mine cryptocurrencies, special computers with colossal processing powers are required which consume a massive chunk of the electricity supply.

Mining cryptocurrency is a very energy-intensive process that usually relies on electricity, generated with fossil fuels, specifically coal.

Some studies also claim that bitcoin stands a significant chance to accelerate global warming while producing carbon dioxide that could push the world’s temperature above 2 Degree Celsius within less than three decades.

According to the latest data from the University of Cambridge, bitcoin consumes over 178 Terawatt-hour (TWh) annually, ranking it in the top 30 energy consumers if it was a country.

Edward Moya, a senior market analyst at the currency trading firm OANDA believes that the environmental impact from bitcoin mining was one of the biggest risks from the entire crypto market.

According to Ben Dear, CEO of Osmosis Investment Management: "We are of course very concerned about the level of carbon dioxide emissions generated from bitcoin mining."

As reported, Dear’s company is an investor managing almost $2.2 billion in assets that hold Tesla stock in several portfolios.

Meltem Demirors, chief strategy officer at digital asset manager CoinShares Group, said: "Elon was getting a lot of questions and criticisms and this statement allows him to appease critics while still keeping Bitcoin on his balance sheet."

However, in the recent Tweet Musk did not clarify whether there was any Tesla vehicle sold using bitcoins.

But he noted that Tesla is looking at other cryptocurrencies which use “<1 per cent of Bitcoin's energy/transaction".

tesla bitcoin use

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