- Square to invest in a solar power managed bitcoin mining plant
- The project will help shed BTC mining’ s eco damaging image
- Project will establish beleif that sustainable bitcoin mining is possible
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has revealed that his company Square will invest $5 million in a solar-powered bitcoin mining project. For some time, a raging debate is going on about the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining. BTC mining involves huge computational needs, which draws an enormous amount of power. Of late use of eco-friendly energy sources for Bitcoin mining has been on the rise, and Jack Dorsey’s latest move is cited as one more effort in this direction.
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and his company Square will set up clean energy mine
Jack Dorsey and his company Square will partner with Bitcoin technology company Blockstream and set up eco friendly and clean energy mine. The latest venture of Dorsey has been hailed and go a long way in creating an environment-friendly image of Bitcoin. Bitcoin is facing a lot of bad publicity about the environmental impact of its mining activities. BTC is growing at a geometric rate, and so has the mining activities.
Square Inc solar BTC mine venture will make BTC mining Sustainable
Jack Dorsey owned Square Inc is a well known global financial and digital service provider that will invest in the solar BTC mine venture, making bitcoin mining sustainable. However, cryptocurrency mining advocates and sceptics wonder if Bitcoin mining will ever be sustainable. Blockstream, a bitcoin technology company, will provide the infrastructure for the solar BTC mine project.
Several entities like Tesla and its CEO Elon Musk have already distanced themselves from BTC, citing environmental concerns. Elon Musk has been critical of crypto currency and has in his tweets asked investors to exercise caution while investing in crypto currency.
Jack Dorsey Square to the Rescue
The Jack Dorsey backed bitcoin mining project will go a long way in improving the image of BTC, which took a dent after the allegation that its mining was environmentally damaging. In a tweet, Square Inc revealed that it would start the solar-powered mine at Blockstream’s locations in the US.
The project is being developed to prove that Bitcoin can be mined without harming the environment. The need for environmentally friendly Bitcoin mining has increased in the past few years as the acceptance of crypto currency increases. The latest Square mining project will be an open-source project, and the development and the code will be online and available for all. The developers of the project plan to perfect an “open and transparent” model which will set the pace for other businesses.
However, the dark side of Bitcoin mining cannot be brushed aside. Earlier Bitcoin mining companies were established in locations that produced cheap electricity produced from thermal fired powerhouses in China and other countries that did not have strict environmental controls. The crypto mining activities also came as a boon for many coal-powered power generation plants, which were earlier closed for lack of demand.
Companies are now pledging to construct environment-friendly power sources to power bitcoin mining. However, a lot needs to be done since a significant chunk of bitcoin mining uses fossil fuel-powered stations. The numbers of conventional power sources which leave a huge carbon footprint are many, and the solar power project is just a drop in the ocean.
Bitcoin mining power Usage and Environmental Concerns
It has been a very tough year for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The debate has particularly hit the crypto mining sector on effects on the environment caused by mining. Bitcoin and other digital tokens are based on a highly decentralized blockchain, and there is no centralized body verifying transactions.
Bitcoin mining is done with high-end devices that gobble up enormous amounts of energy. A significant part of the energy used for mining is obtained from fossil fuel which is harmful to the environment. A study conducted by Cambridge researchers revealed that BTC mining consumed more energy than Sweden, Argentina, and Malaysia combined. Even Tesla, which had earlier invested heavily in BTC, has stopped accepting BTC as payments for its electric cars citing environmental concerns.
Andrew is a blockchain developer who developed his interest in cryptocurrencies while pursuing his post-graduation major in blockchain development. He is a keen observer of details and shares his passion for writing, along with coding. His backend knowledge about blockchain helps him give a unique perspective to his writing skills, and a reliable craft at explaining the concepts such as blockchain programming, languages and token minting. He also frequently shares technical details and performance indicators of ICOs and IDOs.