Skip to main content

Bitcoin has a massive carbon footprint. This clever new cryptocurrency doesn’t

Bitcoin is undoubtedly exciting, but, as much as it might promise to solve some of the problems associated with global finance, it’s also responsible for creating problems of its own. The most concerning of these is the environmental impact of mining cryptocurrency due to the huge amounts of electricity it requires. This, in turn, results in tens of millions of metric tons worth of carbon dioxide being pumped into the atmosphere.

That’s a big cause for concern, and it’s something that researchers at Switzerland’s Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne have been working to come up with a solution for. In contrast to the large electricity consumption and carbon footprint of Bitcoin, they are developing a new approach to cryptocurrencies they hope could lead to a near zero-energy alternative.

Related Videos

“We developed an algorithm that enables payment in a secure and efficient manner,” Guerraoui Rachid, a professor in the School of Computer and Communication Sciences, told Digital Trends. “Essentially, unlike Bitcoin and its alternatives, the algorithm we propose does not require reaching global agreement about the ordering of all transactions.”

But how does it do this? The answer involves a fundamental rethink of the traditional Bitcoin model, first described more than a decade ago by mysterious Bitcoin pioneer Satoshi Nakamoto. That approach involves a “consensus” distributed system in which all players must agree on the validity of transactions, which involves the execution of complex and energy-intensive computing tasks.

The alternative approach, called the Byzantine Reliable Broadcast, works by assuming participants in the system are good actors and only ignoring them if they are seen to be abusing it. In doing so, the researchers behind the project think safe cryptocurrency transactions could be achieved with just a few grams of CO2 rather than an estimated 300 kg for a current single Bitcoin transaction. That’s more like sending or receiving an email.

“The problem we are solving is called double payment, and it is the main problem posed by Nakamoto in ‘his’ seminal paper defining Bitcoin,” Rachid explained. “We basically looked carefully at the problem and realized that you do not need a heavy consensus-based solution. If, hypothetically, Alice wants to send money to Bob, it is enough for Bob to ask around if Alice was not trying to cheat and give the same money to somebody else.”

The work was selected as the best paper at the International Conference of Distributed Computing (DISC). There’s still a long way before this work ever gets turned into an actual cryptocurrency approach, however — if, indeed, it ever does.

“I’m not sure whether I’d do that,” Rachid continued. “I would rather open-source it and have people use the algorithm for exchanging goods in a frugal manner.”

Editors' Recommendations

Victrola’s Re-Spin is a sustainable take on the suitcase record player
Victrola Re-Spin suitcase record player.

Victrola has a new option for vinyl fans who want a portable way to play their favorite platters: The $99 Victrola Re-Spin, a retro-styled suitcase record player with a more sustainable design. The company debuted the Re-Spin at CES 2022 and it will be available in the third quarter of 2022 for $100 in blue, green, gray, and red at victrola.com and major retailers.

When it comes to the Re-Spin's sustainability, it's not so much about the incorporation of more sustainable materials like recycled plastics or bamboo as it is about a reduction in the amount of material used. The company has said that once in production, it plans to reduce Re-Spin by more than 20% in size and weight when compared to traditional suitcase record players.

Read more
WhatsApp launches crypto-powered mobile payments in the U.S.
WhatsApp Messenger on an iPhone.

WhatsApp has launched a digital payments pilot in the U.S., allowing a limited number of people to send and receive money with the same ease they would a regular message. This payment feature is powered by the Meta-owned Novi digital wallet service, which uses Pax Dollars (USDP) to facilitate transfers, and they all go through instantly.

Meta launched Novi back in 2020, saying, "With Novi, sending money will be as easy as sending a message. You’ll be able to use Novi as a stand-alone app, as well as in Messenger and WhatsApp. There will be no hidden charges to add, send, receive or withdraw money, and your transfers will arrive instantly. All Novi customers will be verified using government-issued ID, and fraud protections will be built in throughout the app."

Read more
Sonos needs to curb its power consumption if it wants to be net zero by 2040
Sonos Roam

Like many tech companies, Sonos knows it must do better when it comes to the climate and it has come to the conclusion that in order to make a significant impact on its carbon footprint, it will have to find ways to stop its family of wireless speakers and components from using so much electricity.

This realization is spelled out in the company's first climate action plan, which it will use as a road map to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030 and then net zero by 2040. The plan joins Sonos' first product sustainability program, which it also unveiled as part of its 2021 Listen Better Report, which provides an overview of its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) efforts.

Read more