TY - JOUR
T1 - Blockchain, climate damage, and death
T2 - Policy interventions to reduce the carbon emissions, mortality, and net-zero implications of non-fungible tokens and Bitcoin
AU - Truby, Jon
AU - Brown, Rafael Dean
AU - Dahdal, Andrew
AU - Ibrahim, Imad
N1 - Funding Information:
This publication was made possible by the NPRP award NPRP 11S-1119-170016 from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of The Qatar Foundation). The statements made herein are solely the responsibility of the author. Open Access funding provided by the Qatar National Library.
Funding Information:
This publication was made possible by the NPRP award NPRP 11S-1119-170016 from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of The Qatar Foundation). The statements made herein are solely the responsibility of the author. Open Access funding provided by the Qatar National Library .
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors
PY - 2022/6
Y1 - 2022/6
N2 - The art industry has commercialised and popularised non-fungible tokens (NFTs), with the volume and value of NFT transactions rapidly growing to US$ 10.7 billion in Q3 2021. The increase in NFT transactions has drawn the attention of the art market to the consequent carbon emissions resulting from verifying transactions in proof-of-work blockchains supporting NFT transactions. With CO2-related deaths attributable to NFT transactions, social pressure from the art market has helped to progress the switch away from the deliberately polluting proof-of-work blockchains to more sustainable consensus protocols. Nonetheless, many popular types of blockchain have resisted the pressure to decrease their environmental impact, including Bitcoin, whose attributed 2021 annual emissions will produce emissions responsible for around 19,000 future deaths. In response, recent global policy interventions have employed legal and fiscal tools to reduce the carbon impact of some or all types of blockchains. Linking the damage caused by proof-of-work blockchains to climate change and human mortality, this study examines the recent policy interventions designed to motivate a shift in blockchain consensus protocols and promote miners' energy efficiency to mitigate environmental damage. This article further explores available policy intervention options that are currently not utilised.
AB - The art industry has commercialised and popularised non-fungible tokens (NFTs), with the volume and value of NFT transactions rapidly growing to US$ 10.7 billion in Q3 2021. The increase in NFT transactions has drawn the attention of the art market to the consequent carbon emissions resulting from verifying transactions in proof-of-work blockchains supporting NFT transactions. With CO2-related deaths attributable to NFT transactions, social pressure from the art market has helped to progress the switch away from the deliberately polluting proof-of-work blockchains to more sustainable consensus protocols. Nonetheless, many popular types of blockchain have resisted the pressure to decrease their environmental impact, including Bitcoin, whose attributed 2021 annual emissions will produce emissions responsible for around 19,000 future deaths. In response, recent global policy interventions have employed legal and fiscal tools to reduce the carbon impact of some or all types of blockchains. Linking the damage caused by proof-of-work blockchains to climate change and human mortality, this study examines the recent policy interventions designed to motivate a shift in blockchain consensus protocols and promote miners' energy efficiency to mitigate environmental damage. This article further explores available policy intervention options that are currently not utilised.
KW - Bitcoin
KW - Blockchain energy consumption
KW - Carbon emissions
KW - Ethereum
KW - NFTs
KW - Non-fungible token
KW - Sustainable development goals
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85123708012&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.erss.2022.102499
DO - 10.1016/j.erss.2022.102499
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85123708012
SN - 2214-6296
VL - 88
JO - Energy Research and Social Science
JF - Energy Research and Social Science
M1 - 102499
ER -
