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by lightgreen 1961 days ago
> CO2

In many places Bitcoin is mined electricity is co2 free.

Generally, there are no reasons why electricity needs to emit co2: nuclear power plants can produce enough electricity to power all bitcoins in the world.

> electronic waste environmental disaster

As well as any other consumption. Bought a new car while old one if still running? You damaged the environment.

To reduce the damage to the environment, garbage tax can be introduced, so market can decide what’s more important and less damaging, bitcoins or a new PlayStation.

Bitcoins might be useless, but don’t blame it for all the problems in the world.
1 comments
cbzbc 1961 days ago
> In many places Bitcoin is mined electricity is co2 free.

And that electricity could otherwise be used to displace the use of electricity that generates co2.

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lightgreen 1960 days ago
No, electricity cannot be efficiently transferred over large distances or where there are no power lines with enough capacity. In certain places unused electricity is just lost.
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cbzbc 1960 days ago
If you are generating electricity in places where it cannot be used then you are causing needless damage to the environment and you should certainly stop doing that.

The idea that the majority of the energy used for bitcoin is generated in such places has no real basis in fact.

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lightgreen 1960 days ago
If you don't generate power and hydro power plant, you just overflow it, there is no damage in consuming this electricity.

If sun is shining, and you don't generate solar electricity, if you heat it, and that's it, there's no damage taking solar electricity.

And so on.

> The idea that the majority of the energy used for bitcoin is generated in such places has no real basis in fact.

It is based on fact. For example: "In so doing, the CoinShares team found that bitcoin miners were using a disproportionate share of renewables." https://www.vox.com/2019/6/18/18642645/bitcoin-energy-price-...

But the original idea that bitcoin is a gigantic CO2 disaster is definitely not based on facts.

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cbzbc 1957 days ago
> If sun is shining, and you don't generate solar electricity, if you heat it, and that's it, there's no damage taking solar electricity.

Don't use solar panels where the electricity from them can't be fully utilised, they have an environmental cost to build.

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Dma54rhs 1960 days ago
At certain places they need to find someone to use the excess, that is why we even see on exchanges price for electricity going negative.
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