Carbon emission from cryptocurrencies pose a threat to the planet, says IPCC

cnbctv18.com:

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the arm of the United Nations aimed at coordination on climate-related policies, is concerned that cryptocurrency may require greater energy demands which will be detrimental to the planet.The IPCC said, cryptocurrencies, which are a part of the infrastructure around data centres and information technology systems related to blockchain, could be a major global source of carbon dioxide, if the electricity production is not decarbonised.“The energy requirements of cryptocurrencies are also a growing concern, although considerable uncertainty exists surrounding the energy use of their underlying blockchain infrastructure,” IPCC said in a report released on Monday."Without immediate and deep emissions reductions across all sectors, limiting global warming to 1.5°C is beyond reach," it said.According to the IPCC, emissions will be affected by growth in information storage, processing, and communication technologies, including artificial intelligence.While these technologies can enhance energy-efficient control, improve demand-side management, reduce transaction costs for energy production and distribution and reduce the need for physical transport, data centres and other related IT systems are electricity-intensive and will raise the demand for energy.Estimated carbon emissions data between 2010 and 2019 reveals that a 50 percent probability of limiting the rise of global average temperature by 1.5°C exists, based on the remaining carbon budget from 2020.Since 2017, energy requirements of mining Bitcoin globally have grown significantly, the report said.“Recent literature indicates a wide range of estimates for 2020 (47 TWh to 125 TWh) due to data gaps and differences in