The report from the BMC found that 66.1% of the BTC miners surveyed use renewable energy. The findings cause no surprise to the community, as many mining farms already take advantage of hydro and geothermal power.
A recently released survey by the Bitcoin Mining Council (BMC) estimates that 58.5% of miners now use a mix of sustainable energies. The forum consulted 46% of Bitcoin miners globally, 66.1% of whom used electricity from various sources.
The survey focused on the mix of sustainable energy, technological efficiency, and electricity consumption by miners. That data allowed the BMC to estimate that the electricity obtained from the combination of sustainable sources is around 58.5% of the total.
There was an increase of 90% in the technological efficiency of the global Bitcoin network in the fourth quarter of 2021. However, it could become even more efficient. That data is part of the third quarterly report from the BMC, a forum formed with support from some of the best Bitcoin mining companies.
Michael Saylor, CEO of MicroStrategy and member of the BMC, referred to the survey results. He said that there were dramatic improvements in the energy efficiency and sustainability of Bitcoin mining in the last quarter of 2021.
The renowned businessman and investor believes that several factors helped make that happen. He mentioned technological advances relating to electricity semiconductors, the rapid expansion of mining in the US, and the massive migration of miners from China.
In addition, the processing power on the network has continued to rise in recent months, contributing to this optimistic picture. That increase of the hash rate occurred even as the mining difficulty reached an all-time high of 26.6T.
Impact of Bitcoin Mining on the Environment
The narrative that Bitcoin mining consumes too much energy has gained traction in the last couple of years. However, a growing number of miners have adopted renewable energy to develop their activity.
There have also been heated debates regarding the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining for some time. In that regard, the US Congress is preparing to thoroughly examine the energy impact of proof-of-work (PoW) blockchain networks.
However, the findings of the survey by BMC do not take the community by surprise. Many miners see the environmental impact as the biggest hurdle to face to develop their activity. For that reason, they look to sustainable energy sources such as hydro and geothermal power.
Cryptocurrency mining with renewable energy seems to be an ever-growing trend. However, the industry still has a long way to go before making a more significant positive environmental impact. It is a matter of time before most mining farms worldwide use become environmentally friendly.
Cryptocurrencies play a significant role in the economy, evident in the growing interest in Bitcoin mining. To carry out their activity without any problems, miners have incorporated the use of renewable energy. They seek to reduce the negative impact that the industry could have on the environment.
By Alexander Salazar
