The Bitcoin Series - Part 9: Bitcoin and the Environment Coexist? - The Crypto 101 Show

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:09):
Welcome to the Crypto one on one Show, where we
dive into the world of cryptocurrencies, bitcoin, blockchain, and all
the technology with it. Whether you're experienced or a beginner
to crypto, our goal is to break down complex concepts
and make it easy for you to understand the basics,
from bitcoin to all coins. We'll cover it all in
a way that's easy to digest and provide listeners with

(00:30):
the knowledge and understanding they need to make informed decisions
and better critical thought. Sit back, relax, and let's simplify
your understanding of cryptocurrencies on the Crypto one.

Speaker 2 (00:39):
On one Show, Part nine.

Speaker 1 (00:53):
Can Bitcoin and the environment coexist? Energy, sustainability and the climate.
I need to start off by saying this is not
financial advice, so if you're looking for that, the show
isn't for you. The content of this podcast episode is
for informational purposes only. The opinions expressed here are not
meant to be taken as financial investment or any other advice.

(01:16):
Bitcoin and energy two words that ignite more debate than answers.
One side says it's a wasteful, dirty process propping up speculation.
The other says it's the most transparent, efficient and even
renewable friendly energy system ever created. In Part nine of
the Bitcoin series, we're diving into the environmental side of

(01:38):
this technology. Is bitcoin energy use a fatal flaw or
a necessary feature? Can it ever be trusted in a
world already battling climate collapse? Or could Bitcoin actually accelerate
the transition to clean energy? So you've heard the headlines.
Now let's talk about what they leave out. Let's get
into it. Question one. Is Bitcoin's energy use a feature

(02:03):
or a flaw? Let's talk about the one question that
gets bitcoin drag the most on social media, in headlines,
and in climate conversations. Does bitcoin destroy the planet? Some
people say bitcoin uses more electricity than Argentina. Others say
it's the greenest innovation we've had in a decade. So
which is it? With an honest answer, Bitcoin does use

(02:27):
a lot of energy, but energy use does not equal
energy waste. First, what is Bitcoin's energy actually doing? Unlike
most digital systems, Bitcoin uses proof of work, which means
miners compete to solve math puzzles to secure the network
and create new coins. That process takes electricity a lot

(02:48):
of it. But why is that? Because Bitcoin is trying
to do something radical. It's trying to create digital money
that can't be forged. It's trying to secure a network
that no government or company controls. It's trying to ensure
no one can cheat, rewrite history, or counterfeit coins. And
it turns out to make money incorruptible. You need skin

(03:11):
in the game. You need cost, and the cost is energy.
So yes, Bitcoin's energy use is intentional. It's not a bug.
It's a security feature. But now a deeper question is
the energy worth it? Let's compare it. What do we
spend energy on? Let's zoom out what else burns energy?

(03:34):
Traditional banking uses huge data centers, buildings, and armored vehicles.
Gold mining destroys ecosystems and uses massive fuel and chemical input.
Streaming services like netflixing YouTube use more energy annually than
Bitcoin has ever, and the US military burns far more
fossil fuel per day than the entire Bitcoin network. We

(03:56):
don't measure energy use in headlines, we measure it in text.
So is bitcoin becoming greener?

Speaker 2 (04:03):
Actually?

Speaker 1 (04:04):
Yes, Here's what most people don't know. Bitcoin mining is
geographically flexible. Miners can go wherever cheap or excess energy exists.
That often means stranded renewable or wasted energy, hydro wind,
flared methane, even volcanoes. Studies estimate that bitcoin mining is
already over fifty percent renewable, and some argue its climbing.

(04:26):
Some startups even use bitcoin to capture methane from landfills,
power up remote hydro projects that wouldn't be profitable otherwise,
build incentives for solar or wind in off grid regions.
So while bitcoin doesn't guarantee clean energy, it can incentivize
it in ways that traditional systems don't. But is it
still too much? Yes, it could be if we don't

(04:49):
change the world's energy systems. But bitcoin didn't cause the
climate crisis. It just exposes how insufficient the old systems
already are. So when Bitcoin's energy use of flaw only
if we ignore what it's replacing, only if we pretend
the legacy system was clean, fair, and harmless. The real
question is in how much energy it's Are we using

(05:11):
energy to protect power or to decentralize it, to surveil
or to liberate, to profit or to preserve. Because bitcoin
won't fix climate change, but it might just help build
an energy future that's cleaner, freer, and harder to corrupt
if we use it that way? Question two? How does
proof of work compared to traditional banking or military emissions?

(05:35):
Let's zoom out for a second. Bitcoin gets slammed for
energy use, but rarely do we ask compared to what
if we're talking about climate impact? We need to be
honest about baselines. Is Bitcoin's proof of work model worse
than the systems we already use, like traditional banking or
even military operations that support FIAC currencies? What is proof

(05:56):
of work again? Let's do a quick recap. Proof of
work is bitcoin security mechanism, the part where miners compete
using computing power to validate transactions and add blocks to
the chain. It's energy intensive by design because energy is
the cost that prevents cheating. If you want a money
system that no government or corruption can fake, forge or manipulate,

(06:18):
proof of work is how bitcoin enforces that neutrality. So yes,
it's energy hungry, But is it worse than everything else
we already use? Let's compare traditional banking emissions versus bitcoin.
Bitcoin in twenty twenty four used roughly one hundred to
one hundred and forty tarawat hour per year and estimated
fifty to sixty million tons of carbon dioxide per year,

(06:42):
which was transparent and traceable emissions where current banking systems
and these are conservative estimates, including branches, ATMs, servers, transport
and corporate offices estimated two hundred and sixty to three
hundred tarawat hour per year and one hundred and thirty
to one hundred and fifty million tons of carbon dioxide

(07:03):
per year. In simplified terms, that means traditional banking uses
over two times the energy and emits over two times
the carbon dioxide. But no one talks about it. Why
because we don't see it. It's normalized. Bitcoin gets headlines,
banks get bailouts just for fun. What about military emissions?

(07:24):
The US military alone is one of the largest institutional
polluters on Earth. It burns approximately eighty five million barrels
of fuel per year and emits fifty nine million tons
of carbon dioxide annually. And that's just the US military,
not global defense. What does that have to do with money,

(07:45):
Well everything, because the US dollar is backed by global dominance,
not gold, and that dominance it runs on oil, military presence,
and financial leverage. In short, fiat currencies are defended with warships, weapons,
and sanctions. Bitcoin is defended with math and electricity. So
when we say bitcoin's energy use is bad, we have

(08:08):
to ask is it worse than funding air strikes, bases,
and proxy wars to protect the dollar. The main takeaway
here is that bitcoin mining is visible, you can point
at it. Banking emissions are hidden, military emissions are ignored,
but the carbon still goes into the air. If we're honest.
Proof of work isn't more transparent, borderless, and arguably less

(08:31):
violent way to secure value that uses electricity, not missiles,
not bombs, not banks that fail and get bailed out.
Bitcoin isn't energy neutral, not yet, but it forces us
to ask what should energy be used for? If we
can secure an open global monetary network without armies, without

(08:51):
central banks, and without corruption, then that might just be
the cleanest trade we've made in a century. Question three?
Can bitcoin actually accelerate renewable energy? When most people think
of bitcoin and energy, they think of waste, wasted electricity,
wasted heat, wasted resource for fake internet money. But what

(09:14):
if bitcoin mining could actually help us bill to clean
energy future. It's kind of already happening in some very real,
very surprising ways. The core idea was bitcoin makes energy
profitable even in places where it wasn't. This is how
it works. Renewable energy like solar, wind and hydro is
often abundant but unreliable or stranded because the sun doesn't

(09:38):
always shine, the wind doesn't always blow, or the river
might be far from a city. That means a lot
of clean energy goes to waste because there's no one
nearby to use it or no grid to carry it.
This is where bitcoin miners come in. They're mobile, flexible,
and they go anywhere power is cheap, so instead of
wasting solar or flaring the methane, a bitcoin minor can

(10:00):
show up and monetize the surplus instantly. Quick side note,
flaring the methane means they release it to the atmosphere
rather than to build the equipment and pipelines.

Speaker 2 (10:10):
To capture it.

Speaker 1 (10:11):
So with not wasting it, there's no need for a
middleman and no need for a grid. Here's some real
examples where this is already happening stranded hydropower in Africa
and Latin America, where miners set up near remote hydroplants
that weren't profitable. Now the power grid gets used and
the plant can expand flared methane capture, where companies like

(10:33):
Crusoe Energy are using excess gas from oil rigs normally
burned off into the air to mine bitcoin instead reducing
emissions off peak wind and solar in Texas, where wind
farms often overproduce at night, with miners buying up the extra,
producers make money and help stabilize the grid. Geothermal in

(10:53):
l Salvador, this is volcano energy. Literally, bitcoin mining helped
fund and just by the use of natural geothermal power.
Why does this work Because bitcoin mining doesn't care when
or where power is generated. It doesn't need to deliver
electricity to homes or hospitals. It just needs power anytime, anywhere.

(11:15):
That makes it the perfect buyer of last resort for
clean energy. If no one else will buy the power,
a bitcoin minor will. But is this really scalable? Yes
it is, but with caveats. This model works best in
areas with excess or unstable grids, not already energy stressed ones.
It's not about replacing homes or hospitals. It's about monetizing

(11:39):
what would have been lost as more renewables come online.
Miners can absorb the volatility and help fund the infrastructure.
Think of it like this. If clean energy is the future,
bitcoin mining might be the economic glue that makes it
viable sooner. And while climate activists and bitcoiners don't always
get along, there are places like Texas, Iceland, and Kenya

(12:02):
where they're starting to realize they might be on the
same team. Because this isn't just about electricity. It's about
decentralized money, decentralized power, and building systems that don't rely
on fossil fuels or corrupt gatekeepers. So can bitcoin accelerate
renewable energy?

Speaker 2 (12:18):
Yes?

Speaker 1 (12:19):
When done right, It won't replace energy policy or carbon taxes,
but it can make clean energy profitable in the places
that need it most, and that might be Bitcoin's most
unexpected superpower, turning wasted energy into financial freedom one block
at a time. So where do we land with this?
Bitcoin is energy intensive, yes, but compared to the invisible

(12:42):
cost of banks, war machines, and fossil fuel back economies,
it's also transparent, adaptable, and uniquely positioned to reward cleaner,
smarter power. Proof of work may not be perfect, but
it's open source, accountable, and already being used in places
where traditional finance has failed. The real question isn't just
how much energy does bitcoin use? It's what are we

(13:05):
using energy for? And who gets to decide? If bitcoin
can help us build a more renewable, decentralized, and open
energy future, then maybe it's not the climate villain we
think it is. Maybe it's a bridge to something better.
Thanks for listening to Part nine of the Bitcoin Series.
In the next episode will turn to something deeper, surveillance, privacy,

(13:26):
and digital freedom, as we ask can bitcoin be truly private?
Until then, stay curious, stay grounded. I want to be
extremely upfront that I try my best to leave all
of my opinions out of this. I know this is
very condensed and simplified, but I want you to gain
your own understanding of beliefs and not be persuaded by me.
I hope this helped you gain a better grasp of it.

(13:47):
Please remember to share, follow, and subscribe to our mailing
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You can gain more with your crypto knowledge. If this
sparks something in you or made you question what's possible,
I'd love to hear about it, and if you found
this valuable, share it, tag someone who needs to hear
it or just sit with it. Thanks for listening. Thanks

(14:17):
for listening to this episode of The Crypto One on
one Show. If you would like to join our email list,
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The Bitcoin Series - Part 9: Bitcoin and the Environment Coexist?

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