The US government recommends the use of green energy for the virtual currency industry with high power consumption, and if it does not improve, it may lead to regulation



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United States Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has released a report to promote the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. In this report, the US government recommends the use of green energy for cryptocurrency (crypto asset) mining companies in the country.

09-2022-Crypto-Assets-and-Climate-Report.pdf
(PDF file) https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/09-2022-Crypto-Assets-and-Climate-Report.pdf

White House report proposes possible restrictions on proof-of-work crypto mining
https://www.theblock.co/post/168621/white-house-report-proposes-possible-restrictions-on-proof-of-work-crypto-mining

Here's how much energy crypto mining gobbles up in the US - The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2022/9/8/23341685/crypto-mining-bitcoin-energy-environment-impact-report-biden

White House Condemns Energy Use Of Mining Bitcoin - Bitcoin Magazine - Bitcoin News, Articles and Expert Insights
https://bitcoinmagazine.com/business/white-house-condemns-energy-use-of-mining-bitcoin

The report released by OSTP is a report that President Joe Biden issued an executive order in early 2022 to make it mandatory . This report was produced in collaboration with US congressmen and policy makers.In this report, the government estimates that the power consumption generated in the US due to virtual currency operation will be 0.9 to 1.7% of the total power consumption in the United States. points out that it has been reached.

This is roughly equivalent to the total power usage of home computers in the United States and all diesel fuel used in railroads. The operation of cryptocurrencies emits greenhouse gases equivalent to 25 to 50 million tons of carbon dioxide annually in the United States, which is equivalent to 0.4-0.8% of the country's total greenhouse gas emissions. that's right.



In the OSTP report, cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and other tokens that use blockchain technology are collectively referred to as “virtual currency operations,” but overseas media The Verge said, “The amount of electricity used in cryptocurrency operations has increased. One of the major factors behind this is the type of security system called proof of work that underpins Bitcoin and Ethereum, currently the largest cryptocurrency networks.”

Proof of work accounts for most of the electricity used by the cryptocurrency industry, making blockchains such as Bitcoin and Ethereum very energy intensive. In fact, Ethereum is in the process of transitioning from proof of work to another system called proof of stake ( The Merge ), and if this is realized, power consumption can be reduced by up to 99.95%.

What is the large-scale upgrade 'The Merge' that reduces the power consumption of Ethereum by more than 99%? -GIGAZINE



In addition, it has been pointed out that virtual currency mining consumes too much electricity so far, and the University of Cambridge pointed out that the amount of electricity used by Bitcoin mining is at the national level, and it became a big topic. sometimes There is also a case where a country that has run out of electricity due to cryptocurrency mining has banned cryptocurrency mining .

University of Cambridge explains in an easy-to-understand manner the power consumption of bit coin mining that consumes national level power - GIGAZINE



In a report released by the OSTP, the Environmental Protection Agency said it would “provide technical assistance to states, communities, the cryptocurrency industry and We must begin a collaborative process with others to build an environmentally responsible cryptocurrency technology,” the statement said.

If the report's recommended use of green energy does not progress, governments may consider legislation to limit or eliminate the use of high energy intensity consensus mechanisms for cryptocurrency mining.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Corporate Finance Division has also revealed that it is setting up a new office to coordinate public information for cryptocurrency companies. This is said to be an office to deal with “unique and evolving applications” related to cryptocurrencies. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has also suggested that Congress will support giving the SEC's sister market regulators more powers to oversee certain cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin.

in Note, Posted by logu_ii