In its most recent research, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) highlighted cryptocurrency mining as one of the technologies that may necessitate increasing energy consumption. Therefore, it suggested a 50 percent reduction in world emissions by 2030 to mitigate the environmental consequences of climate change due to cryptocurrency mining.
IPCC
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a United Nations agency in charge of analysing climate change research. It issued a new report on Monday emphasising warnings about future climate hazards. The current report from the IPCC is the third in a series that examines the level of climate change mitigation initiatives.
IPCC research
According to the analysis, the energy demands of cryptocurrencies are a developing issue, and there is significant ambiguity around the energy usage of their core blockchain infrastructure. Along with cryptocurrency and blockchain, the IPCC includes the energy needs for artificial intelligence (A.I.).
However, the organisation stated that depending on how they are managed, all three technologies have the potential to both reduce and raise emissions. They can increase energy-efficient control, lower transaction costs for energy generation and distribution, improve demand-side management, and eliminate the need for physical transport.
Other climate change research on energy-intensive cryptocurrency mining
The IPCC is not the only recognised authority that has identified cryptocurrencies as a potential source of carbon emissions. Early this year, US politicians began questioning Bitcoin mining companies on how much power they use for crypto mining since the impact of cryptocurrency mining on electricity is being seen all over the world.
Erik Thedéen, Vice-Chairman of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), advocated for a bloc-wide ban on “proof of work” (PoW) crypto mining across Europe in November 2021, claiming that the industry’s energy use was becoming a “national concern” in his home Sweden.
