When it comes to climate -
"We're going to need bigger guns".
@ed_hawkins - Data - ed-hawkins.github
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I was a member of Extinction Rebellion during the early years. I'm fully aware of the dire Climate Emergency but also increasingly aware despite all great efforts, as you can see -
EVERYTHING IS ACCELERATING UPWARDS !
Energy consumption ≠ Emissions. Many people when looking at Bitcoin for the first time, only see the immediate & surprisingly large energy consumption, however, few grasp the much broader consequences on Finance, Growth & Climate.
Bitcoin net emissions compared
Below, Bitcoins net Global Warming Potential (including reductions for methane mining, heating & demand response) is compared to man made Methane & other sectors Bitcoin could offset. The potential for Bitcoin mining with waste Methane and curtailment of other sectors to reduce over all emissions is significant. It could not only make Bitcoin carbon negative, but go way further ! enforcing a Circular Economy & De-growth.
Global Warming Potential CO₂eq
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Bitcoin mining with Methane is already directly reducing emissions from the following sectors -
Energy Demand/response also enables greater penetration of renewables. Bitcoin could also influence the not so obvious but potentially much larger drivers of climate change - Each section is discussed in more detail below. |
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The Big Tomali !
Bitcoin = No longer forced to invest in climate destruction.
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What if money it's self was the core problem ? |
What if we could simply just save for retirement & not have to invest ?
What if politicians could not simply print money to raise an army & take us all to war ?
What if Airlines & Fracking companies were NOT funded with freshly printed money ?
What if central banks could not print enormous amounts of money give it to the people they dare not say no to ?
What if politicians could not simply print money to raise an army & take us all to war ?
What if Airlines & Fracking companies were NOT funded with freshly printed money ?
What if central banks could not print enormous amounts of money give it to the people they dare not say no to ?
Growth
Growth is absolutely required by governments that have over committed & run up ridiculous amounts of debt but have no hope of paying down other than by printing money.
Corporate capture of the governments & the money printer is syphoning your saved wealth & pensions into climate destruction. Subsidies & bailouts for the world's biggest polluters (The Military, Big oil, Airlines, Failing legacy car manufacturers, HS2)
Saving fiat money 💵💷💶 is effectively giving wealth to the government & all the above.
Pensions, stocks & shares are investing in environmental destruction just to preserve your wealth. Currently savers are forced to invest just to maintain wealth. Bitcoin = No longer forced to invest in climate destruction.
Prudent savers are fleeced. Feckless borrowers are subsidised.
What ever you spend money on will result in environmental destruction and more emissions. Only saving, not spending your Bitcoin (AKA HODLING ) has zero emissions. You have literally removed your wealth from the wealth extracting system.
The term "Capitalism" implies fair business playing field for all, which of course is not true, whilst some have access to a never ending supply of money.
Corporate capture of the governments & the money printer is syphoning your saved wealth & pensions into climate destruction. Subsidies & bailouts for the world's biggest polluters (The Military, Big oil, Airlines, Failing legacy car manufacturers, HS2)
Saving fiat money 💵💷💶 is effectively giving wealth to the government & all the above.
Pensions, stocks & shares are investing in environmental destruction just to preserve your wealth. Currently savers are forced to invest just to maintain wealth. Bitcoin = No longer forced to invest in climate destruction.
Prudent savers are fleeced. Feckless borrowers are subsidised.
What ever you spend money on will result in environmental destruction and more emissions. Only saving, not spending your Bitcoin (AKA HODLING ) has zero emissions. You have literally removed your wealth from the wealth extracting system.
The term "Capitalism" implies fair business playing field for all, which of course is not true, whilst some have access to a never ending supply of money.
Could Bitcoin “Just stop oil” ?
The climate situation is way past a bit of tinkering, it needs a root & branch tipping of incentives of everyone on the planet. Only Bitcoin can do this.
Below a hypothetical future chart showing how Bitcoin could reduce current emissions while trebling its own.
(accurate for 2022)
Below a hypothetical future chart showing how Bitcoin could reduce current emissions while trebling its own.
(accurate for 2022)
Fracking
Fracking, a major source of methane was funded through money printing. “The real catalyst of the shale revolution was the 2008 financial crisis". Printed money is in effect being laundered from people to Business and destroying the environment in the process.
Reduction in Military
The cosy carbon club - Military - Big Oil - Government -
A major carbon feed back loop ? The Military is responsible for 6% of all world emissions, the world's biggest polluter is generally funded by unlimited money printing. Then deployed to "defend" oil interests.
A major carbon feed back loop ? The Military is responsible for 6% of all world emissions, the world's biggest polluter is generally funded by unlimited money printing. Then deployed to "defend" oil interests.
Total world emissions
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Ending the "money printer go Brrrr" cycle seriously curtails government ability to spend vast amounts on the military. If your enemies can't afford a large military because wealth is held in Bitcoin - neither can you. Military disappears in a puff of logic, and everyone converts to EVs like we should have done 20 years ago.
Population
Population is the primary driver of climate change. No people = No problem.
Climate Problem = Population x emissions per head.
0 People x 7.5 tCO₂/head/year = 0 tCO₂e/year = No Problem
8,000,000,000 People x 7.5 tCO₂/head/year = 60,000,000,000 tCO₂e/year = Big Problem
Actual Mathematical proof !
8,000,000,000 People x 7.5 tCO₂/head/year = 60,000,000,000 tCO₂e/year = Big Problem
Actual Mathematical proof !
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The most prominent climate voices dare not speak its name but it's the elephant in the climate room. If you mention it you will be ostracised, de-boosted on social media & branded a racist.
When the annual immigration figures for the UK shocked everyone at 768,000. Politicians secretly rub their hands together. GROWTH ! More flying, cheap labour, more Tax, more schools, more hospitals, more houses, more cushy contracts. Whilst publicly saying "how could this happen", "we'll fix it, just vote for us again". |
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Migration
Printing Dollars - strips countries (that are unable to print dollars) of their wealth. Seeing comparatively luxurious conditions, the poor 3rd world are incentivised to migrate to wealthier countries. Migrating from a low carbon lifestyle (<2 tCO₂e) to a high carbon lifestyle (16 tCO₂e USA) can multiply your emissions by a factor of 8. Families on different continents requires more flying further driving up the the whole families footprint. It also drives greater population expansion. Families may be tempted to have many children and send some siblings abroad to earn Dollars so they can support the core family at home.
Methane
According to this report - An Eye on Methane: International Methane Emissions Observatory 2021 , Methane emissions from oil and gas are 80-140 Million Tonnes per year. An estimated 1406 TWh of methane could yield ~30% roughly 422 TWh of electricity, enough wasted energy to run all Bitcoin mining 4x over.
Man methane is currently ≈ 50% of GHGs, of which half is man made. Methane is 84-125 x more potent Green House Gas than CO₂ over a 20year period ! When fully combusted 1 kg of natural gas releases 2.75 kg of CO₂ which reduces its Global Warming Potential equivalent ( CO₂e ) to 1/31.2 of its original potency.
(1x86)/(1x2.75)=31.3
(1x86)/(1x2.75)=31.3
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Inefficient flaring of methane results in -
The more we burn, and the more efficiently we burn methane (I.E. in a generator powering a bitcoin mine) the lower the Global Warming Potential (GWP). Always much better just to leave it in the ground. 
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Burning Methane to generate electricity isn’t always profitable because, you can’t always connect the electricity to the grid economically. Bitcoin, however doesn't need to be connected to the grid, so could incentivise much methane burning. This has big possibilities to reduce damaging emissions from the oil & gas industries, landfills & pig/dairy.
Choose one
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Venting
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Flaring
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Mining Bitcoin
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No Oil & Gas
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Crusoe Energy Systems working on a gas-to-bitcoin mining pilot with the gas giant Exxon. EXON Mobil trail mining bitcoin. According to this article
Bio Methane & Bitcoin
Here we see Scilling Digital Mining using anaerobic digestion from pig manure to mine Bitcoin & doing the climate a huge favour in the process ! With enough methane produce almost 1MW selling the electricity back to the grid is not an option without a major grid upgrade ! but mining Bitcoin on site can look very attractive.
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Land Fill Methane
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Vast amounts of methane leak out of land fills (shown left). Adam Wright form vespene.energy talks to Pete McCormack on What Bitcoin did about harnessing the power of methane to mine bitcoin & mitigate climate change.
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Methane not dissipating !?
Even more worrying new reports of Methane persisting in the atmosphere for much longer ! because of Wildfires gobbling up methane scrubbers ! This is why Methanes Global Warming Potential (CO2e) is not a fixed number, but an estimate ranging between 84 - 125 x over a 20 year period .
Gold mining.
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Bitcoin can drive a reduction in environmental destruction & emissions from gold mining. With Bitcoin being such a good store of value, gold will become a relic used only for jewellery and industrial uses.
The Gold industry produces 100MT CO₂ Annually
Gold mining =
In 2013 it took 25.8 gallons of Diesel to produce 1 ounce of gold ! |
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Who's talking about Bitcoin & Climate ?
Margot Paez One of the rising stars in this area, & other panellist's discuss mining with renewable energy & methane. Twitter @jyn_urso
“Climate activists need bitcoin as one of their tools for system change. This is so not easy to understand, but how will you achieve system change, not climate change, if you don’t change the fundamental economics of society? Climate change is a symptom of a more fundamental crisis. If we only achieve decarbonization, the core problem will remain and new symptoms will arise.” A Financial Hail Mary for the Climate: An Argument for Bitcoin Financialization: A backdrop for understanding inaction on climate change and Bitcoin’s role |
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Troy CrossTroy Cross - Philosopher. Environmentalist. Bitcoiner.
Prior to coming to Reed in 2010, he held positions at Yale and Merton College, Oxford. btcpolicy.org/authors/troy-cross |
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Daniel Batten Daniel Batten does a deep dive into Bitcoin mining with otherwise flared methane. In the Video he describes how Methane mining can save 0.15 c of global warming.
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Jeff Booth the author of The Price Of Tomorrow" discuses Bitcoin as a deflationary force.
Even @maxkeiser a name not usually synonymous with climate change talks about the market repercussions.
Even @maxkeiser a name not usually synonymous with climate change talks about the market repercussions.
Further Sources
The Cantillonian Oligarchy: Why the Left Should Embrace Bitcoin medium.com
Who is financing the Climate Crisis ? reclaimfinance.org
Bitcoin – Transformer to an Ecological Society bitcoinsozial.de
Who is financing the Climate Crisis ? reclaimfinance.org
Bitcoin – Transformer to an Ecological Society bitcoinsozial.de
Further reading on this subject from the Bitcoin Policy Institute
Bitcoiners for future website x.com/BTCersforfuture
Bitcoiners for future website x.com/BTCersforfuture
Climate science
For anyone really wanting to get into the climate science-
Here a couple of my favourite charts that are not easy to find. IPCC AR6 WGI Page TS-135
- The IPCC has the most extensive library of Climate Science
- Jame Hansen latest research - www.columbia.edu
Here a couple of my favourite charts that are not easy to find. IPCC AR6 WGI Page TS-135
