The Hidden Cost of Crypto
“Man, if I would have just bought it 5 years ago I could have been a millionaire!” is the recent thought of many in the crypto community. Seven years ago the value per coin was at $67.81, this month that value has skyrocketed surpassing $40k per coin.
Bitcoin is undoubtedly getting more attention as investors are seeing it as digital gold. But why the sudden popularity? In Ethics after the Information Revolution, Flordi explains the idea of ontological friction which is the rate that information flows. ICTs that can reduce ontological friction are more popular as they are easier to adopt. Your wealth is essentially data in a computer meaning that you don’t see the physical cash in your bank, just a number that indicates the account balance. Bitcoin seeks to reduce the ontological friction of having to transport physical money, gold, and other assets as they can flow easily on the blockchain. This now makes your money just data on a screen. However, with all of its potential for re-ontologization, the side to Bitcoin that doesn’t get talked about too much is its environmental effect on our planet.
If Bitcoin is going to be adopted by the common Populus, we should know its adverse effects. Bitcoin works in a way where miners get a share of a Bitcoin if they use their computers to solve a tricky problem that the blockchain needs to survive. These problems often require loads of computers using huge amounts of energy, which results in an increase of greenhouse gas emissions. A study done by Christian Stoll says that Bitcoin mining accounts for 0.2% of global carbon emission, which puts it between Jordan and Sri Lanka in terms of emissions. Luciano Floridi explains that “failing to negate a fruitful relationship between tech and nature is not an option”. At a time where carbon emissions are at extremely sensitive levels, pollution cannot simply be a trade-off, it has to be a deal-breaker.
A potential fix to this issue is to halt the mining of Bitcoins. The last Bitcoin will not be mined until 2140, which is far too long to be emitting C02 for that long. Others suggest only using renewable energy to mine them, and with people like Elon Musk investing 1.5 billion, this could be on the horizon. With all things considered, maybe becoming a millionaire is not worth the ethical and environmental hurdles.
