WEBVTT - How Can Cryptocurrency Clean Up Its Act? 0:00:01.920 --> 0:00:04.320 Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of I Heart Radio. 0:00:06.240 --> 0:00:09.800 Hey brain Stuff, Lauren Vogle bomb here. There's a lot 0:00:09.840 --> 0:00:13.440 of buzz these days about cryptocurrencies, a sort of private 0:00:13.440 --> 0:00:16.480 sector digital version of money that's protected from theft by 0:00:16.520 --> 0:00:21.720 cryptography and counted through blockchain technology, which creates a multitude 0:00:21.720 --> 0:00:26.119 of digital ledgers on computers scattered far and wide. In 0:00:26.160 --> 0:00:29.800 addition to being used to buy things, cryptocurrencies can be 0:00:29.880 --> 0:00:34.720 bought or sold by investors. In April, according to CNBC, 0:00:35.280 --> 0:00:39.040 the global market for cryptocurrencies groot over two trillion dollars 0:00:39.120 --> 0:00:42.720 for the first time ever, with Bitcoin, the biggest digital asset, 0:00:42.920 --> 0:00:47.640 accounting for more than half of that value. But scientists 0:00:47.680 --> 0:00:51.479 and others worry that Bitcoin and these other cryptocurrencies might 0:00:51.600 --> 0:00:54.960 pose a danger to the planet. And that's because their 0:00:55.000 --> 0:00:59.400 blockchains require computers all over the planet to solve complex 0:00:59.400 --> 0:01:03.800 equation in order to verify transactions. Using your computer to 0:01:03.840 --> 0:01:06.640 help pull this off is called mining, and it can 0:01:06.680 --> 0:01:10.080 be lucrative because the people who do it earn cryptocurrency 0:01:10.200 --> 0:01:14.560 as a reward. The problem, critics say, is that all 0:01:14.600 --> 0:01:18.880 of those calculations needed to solve the equations cumulatively consume 0:01:19.160 --> 0:01:23.520 large amounts of electricity. Bitcoin already uses a hundred and 0:01:23.520 --> 0:01:26.440 forty nine point six three taro watt hours a year, 0:01:27.160 --> 0:01:30.959 more than entire countries such as Malaysia and Sweden, according 0:01:31.000 --> 0:01:35.800 to the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index. Microsoft co founder 0:01:35.800 --> 0:01:39.680 Bill Gates recently told journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin that bitcoin 0:01:39.880 --> 0:01:43.640 quote uses more energy per transaction than any other method 0:01:43.880 --> 0:01:49.200 known to mankind. It's difficult to determine exactly how much 0:01:49.200 --> 0:01:52.520 of that electricity is generated by burning coal and gas, 0:01:52.560 --> 0:01:56.800 whose emissions contribute to climate change, but since nearly two 0:01:56.840 --> 0:01:59.919 thirds of the world's total electricity is produced by energy 0:02:00.000 --> 0:02:03.080 plants that use fossil fuels, it's not hard to imagine 0:02:03.080 --> 0:02:07.760 that some cryptocurrencies increasingly could contribute to climate change. A 0:02:07.800 --> 0:02:12.080 study published in the journal Nature Climate concluded that the 0:02:12.120 --> 0:02:15.520 growth of bitcoin could produce enough emissions by itself to 0:02:15.639 --> 0:02:18.480 raise global temperatures by about three and a half degrees 0:02:18.560 --> 0:02:22.519 fahrenheit or two degrees celsius as soon as twenty three, 0:02:22.760 --> 0:02:26.240 though other researchers have argued that this projection over estimates 0:02:26.320 --> 0:02:32.240 the problem, and while any contribution towards climate change sounds scary, 0:02:32.720 --> 0:02:36.360 even that studies lead author Camilo Mora seems hopeful that 0:02:36.400 --> 0:02:40.120 the problem of cryptocurrencies energy consumption can be remedied before 0:02:40.160 --> 0:02:43.800 things get to that point before the article. This episode 0:02:43.800 --> 0:02:46.480 is based on How Stuff Works. Spoke by email with Mora, 0:02:46.800 --> 0:02:49.560 who's an associate professor in the Department of Geography and 0:02:49.680 --> 0:02:53.360 Environment at the University of Hawaii at Manoah. He said, 0:02:53.639 --> 0:02:57.200 the cryptocurrencies are here to stay. This is a technology 0:02:57.280 --> 0:03:00.520 that provides several benefits and there is clearly a huge 0:03:00.600 --> 0:03:04.640 public appetite for it. As a scientist studying this, one 0:03:04.760 --> 0:03:09.079 obviously gets very concerned over the environmental impact of technologies 0:03:09.080 --> 0:03:12.880 that are not ready for showtime. However, I am positive 0:03:12.960 --> 0:03:16.720 that just as other technologies, there is room for positive change. 0:03:18.160 --> 0:03:22.959 More thinks that like other technologies, cryptocurrencies will evolve. It 0:03:23.000 --> 0:03:26.080 wasn't that long ago that cell phones, for example, were bulky, 0:03:26.120 --> 0:03:29.480 expensive bricks instead of the affordable gadgets that we slip 0:03:29.560 --> 0:03:34.280 into our pockets every day. More cites several emerging cryptocurrencies, 0:03:34.360 --> 0:03:38.360 including Stellar and Tron, that he says have less environmental 0:03:38.400 --> 0:03:42.280 impact than Bitcoin, and he believes that in general they'll 0:03:42.320 --> 0:03:46.840 all have smaller ecological footprints in the future. Some new 0:03:46.880 --> 0:03:51.320 cryptocurrencies strive to consume less energy by employing alternative methods 0:03:51.360 --> 0:03:54.000 such as proof of steak, which allows a minor to 0:03:54.080 --> 0:03:57.160 validate transactions on the blockchain based upon the number of 0:03:57.200 --> 0:04:00.840 coins that the minor holds instead of by halving an equation. 0:04:02.040 --> 0:04:06.040 Another potential solution is to transition cryptocurrency networks away from 0:04:06.160 --> 0:04:10.160 energy sources that contribute to climate change. As the Cambridge 0:04:10.160 --> 0:04:14.160 Index website notes, alternative energy sources such as solar and 0:04:14.240 --> 0:04:17.560 wind already produce enough energy to power the entire bitcoin 0:04:17.640 --> 0:04:21.919 network nine times over. To that end, thirty five companies 0:04:21.920 --> 0:04:25.800 and individuals who are involved in cryptocurrency, finance, energy, and 0:04:25.920 --> 0:04:30.800 prominent non governmental organizations have formed the Cryptoclimate Accord or 0:04:30.920 --> 0:04:34.800 c A, which aims to make the cryptocurrency industries energy 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:41.000 consumption a dent renewable by how stuff Works also spoke 0:04:41.120 --> 0:04:44.320 via email with Doug Miller. He's the global markets lead 0:04:44.400 --> 0:04:48.520 for Chord Participant Energy Web, a global nonprofit that develops 0:04:48.520 --> 0:04:52.200 and distributes open source software for energy companies that supports 0:04:52.240 --> 0:04:55.280 the use of clean energy, the tracing of carbon emissions, 0:04:55.320 --> 0:04:59.240 and integration of distributed energy resources such as home rooftop 0:04:59.279 --> 0:05:03.839 solar panel. He said, we are tackling this by developing 0:05:04.000 --> 0:05:07.279 various open source solutions that make it easier for crypto 0:05:07.320 --> 0:05:12.000 mining facilities, exchanges, and investors and holders to procure renewables 0:05:12.040 --> 0:05:15.120 based on the measured or estimated energy use associated with 0:05:15.160 --> 0:05:19.400 their crypto related activities. He pointed out that there is 0:05:19.520 --> 0:05:23.960 variation in the energy consumption of different cryptocurrency blockchain systems 0:05:24.000 --> 0:05:26.600 and that not all of them are as energy intensive 0:05:26.640 --> 0:05:31.119 as bitcoin. He said, Nevertheless, the c c A isn't 0:05:31.279 --> 0:05:36.239 entering conversations around promoting one consensus protocol over another since 0:05:36.240 --> 0:05:40.160 we're focused on decarbonizing the entire sector as fast as possible. 0:05:40.880 --> 0:05:42.800 The central aim of the c c A is to 0:05:42.880 --> 0:05:46.159 turn all crypto related energy use into a source of 0:05:46.279 --> 0:05:49.919 new renewable energy demand so we can accelerate investments in 0:05:49.960 --> 0:05:53.839 additional renewable energy facilities. In other words, we see the 0:05:53.880 --> 0:05:58.400 cryptosector as an important and emerging renewable energy buyer class. 0:05:59.680 --> 0:06:03.280 Miller continued, We also plan to gather input from various 0:06:03.320 --> 0:06:07.559 stakeholders and researchers to provide guidance around whether and how 0:06:07.600 --> 0:06:10.719 additional measures should be implemented so that the sector can 0:06:10.760 --> 0:06:17.400 fully decarbonize and provide an example for other industries to follow. Also, 0:06:17.520 --> 0:06:20.239 on a side note, Elon Musk announced on May twelve 0:06:21.040 --> 0:06:24.120 one that test Slope is no longer accepting bitcoin until 0:06:24.160 --> 0:06:28.360 he's sure it can be produced sustainably. But to keep 0:06:28.360 --> 0:06:32.799 cryptocurrency network's energy use in perspective, it's important to realize 0:06:32.839 --> 0:06:36.200 that those often plugged in but often inactive electronic gadgets 0:06:36.200 --> 0:06:39.760 and appliances in our homes are even more voracious users 0:06:39.800 --> 0:06:44.200 of electricity. The Cambridge Index's website estimates that the electricity 0:06:44.240 --> 0:06:46.839 consumption of such vampire devices over the course of a 0:06:46.920 --> 0:06:49.960 year is enough to power the global bitcoin network for 0:06:50.040 --> 0:06:58.120 one point nine years. Today's episode is based on the 0:06:58.200 --> 0:07:01.719 article cryptocurrency has a huge, huge negative impact on climate 0:07:01.800 --> 0:07:04.560 change on how stuff works dot com, written by Patrick J. 0:07:04.680 --> 0:07:07.400 Keider brain Stuff. This production of I Heart Radio in 0:07:07.440 --> 0:07:09.720 partnership with how stuff works dot Com and is produced 0:07:09.760 --> 0:07:12.720 by Tyler Klang. Four more podcasts. For my heart Radio, 0:07:12.920 --> 0:07:15.720 visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever 0:07:15.760 --> 0:07:17.160 you listen to your favorite shows.