The value of Bitcoin nosedived Enough to curb the enormous energy use of cryptocurrencies — — And related greenhouse gas emissions — But only if the price remains low. The price of one Bitcoin fell below $ 24,000 today, about half the price in March. It has been steadily losing value for several months, but the sudden decline in value over the last 24 hours has kept prices below key thresholds in terms of Bitcoin’s environmental impact.
Since Bitcoin’s price peaked at about $ 69,000 in November, the annual power consumption of the network has been Estimated Must be between approximately 180 and 200 terawatt hours (TWh).It’s about the same amount Electricity used by everyone Data centers around the world every year.
Generally high price The rewards are high, so we encourage more mining.But prices don’t have to prolong at that peak For Bitcoin to continue to consume large amounts of energy. As long as the price is over $ 25,200, the Bitcoin network can maintain a mining operation that uses about 180 TWh per year. research Published last year by digital currency economist Alex de Vries.
Below that $ 25.2K threshold, miners don’t want to risk spending more money on electricity than they can get from mining new tokens, so miners can suspend operations or reduce mining. There is likely to be.
“We have reached a price level that makes it more difficult [for miners]”DeVries says. “Not only will it limit the options for further growth, but it will actually affect their day-to-day operations.”
However, it is still too early to make a concrete prediction as to whether a plunge in Bitcoin prices will ultimately benefit the environment. Last year’s highs mean that miners are likely to have some savings to get over them for some time. “If this is a one-day drop, nothing will change,” says deVries. On the other hand, if prices do not recover quickly, miners may face some difficult decisions.
According to de Vries, a sustainable price of about $ 24,000 could reduce the global energy usage of the Bitcoin network to about 170 TWh per year. This may sound like a gradual change, but it will significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with electricity usage.Comparing it with the annual energy consumption deVries Estimated Bitcoin was responsible throughout most of 2022, it’s like cutting down on the amount of electricity Country Ireland In a year.
Bitcoin mining is inherently energy inefficient. Miners validate transactions by competing to solve increasingly complex puzzles using specialized hardware and are rewarded with new tokens in return. The built-in energy inefficiencies associated with computing are intended to discourage anyone from deliberately ruining a transaction ledger.That’s also why there are so many people in Bitcoin Concerned regarding Greenhouse gas emissions the Cryptocurrency is generated..
Bitcoin is the largest player in cryptocurrencies, so its fluctuating prices are of paramount importance to the environment. But that’s not all. Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency network, uses the same type of energy-intensive process to validate transactions on the blockchain and recognize their value as well. Plunge soon. Therefore, de Vries is a potential energy saver, and the resulting reduction in emissions. It gets bigger when you take the plunge price of Take into account cryptocurrencies that require other energies.
