During the 2008 financial crisis, bitcoin emerged, offering a decentralised alternative to traditional financial systems. Bitcoin’s algorithm-driven trust mechanism has fostered an ecosystem that integrates bitcoin generation, distribution and trading.
However, bitcoin mining has been criticised for its
high energy consumption, posing significant environmental, social and governance (ESG) challenges. As of August, bitcoin’s energy consumption per year was around 141.75 terawatt-hours, equivalent to over 40 per cent of the United Kingdom’s annual electricity demand (around 321TWh) last year.
Therefore, the question arises: can bitcoin mining contribute to a sustainable world? We believe that it can, by becoming a green industry through three key methods.
First, the bitcoin mining industry can optimise energy usage. Sourcing green energy for mining activities can reduce emissions, enhance renewable energy industry efficiency and create economies of scale. According to Cambridge University’s estimates, Bitcoin’s actual greenhouse gas emissions are just
0.14 per cent of global emissions.
Some bitcoin miners already use energy mixes including varying levels of sustainable energy and migrate seasonally to use renewable energy efficiently.
Second, bitcoin mining machines can contribute to high-performance computing activities, supporting beneficial human development activities.
Third, technological advancements can decrease carbon intensity despite increasing electricity consumption related to bitcoin mining. Recovering and recycling emitted gases during mining can help reduce bitcoin’s overall carbon emissions.
With ESG increasingly
attracting attention from financial institutions and the cryptocurrency investment community, several listed mining companies are incorporating ESG goals into their business models. This trend is encouraging the mining market to self-regulate and shift towards green development.
For Hong Kong to build a sustainable framework for a
Web3 society, we must also pay decent attention to bitcoin mining’s green development and explore sustainable development paths. This includes promoting self-regulation in the mining market, improving sustainable energy mixes, using advanced technology to reduce carbon emissions, and investing in renewable energy certificates to offset carbon footprints.
We believe that the bitcoin mining industry can contribute uniquely to international carbon neutrality initiatives. However, achieving this vision requires industry players to actively transition to these sustainable practices and participate in green finance initiatives.
Professor Haitian Lu and Dr Sirui Han, Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology, Hong Kong Polytechnic University
To boost the birth rate, basic conditions must improve
I refer to the front-page
article, “Lee promises to consider ways of boosting city’s population” (August 21).
The issue of increasing the birth rate is, of course, multifaceted but tax incentives and other similar schemes are far from addressing the basic considerations.
Housing affordability is surely a hindrance when young couples can barely afford more than a shoebox, or still live with their parents. A family with a domestic worker won’t fit in a
nano flat, so will one parent have to stop working or lean on elderly grandparents for childcare?
The cost of education seems on a never-ending
increase, especially if you want your child exposed to an education that promotes critical and innovative thinking. Planning for the long term is challenging, especially as the Mandatory Provident Fund is paltry and highly uncompetitive compared to employer-sponsored savings plans such as the United States’ 401(k) plan. Private healthcare in Hong Kong is the second most expensive in the world and we are reading plenty about how our beloved public health system is
struggling to retain and attract doctors and nurses.
My suggestion is for our chief executive to consider how to create an environment that is more ideal for starting a family. Get the property market under control and ensure that rental increases are in line with wages. Stop the construction of nano flats. Address the significant wealth disparity in a city with the
second highest number of dollar billionaires in the world, but also more than 20 per cent of the population living below the poverty line.
Hong Kong is sadly not an ideal city in which to start a family.
Simon Constantinides, Sai Kung
Will the government’s garbage bags be eco-friendly?
The
waste charging scheme set to begin in April next year seems a step backwards. I have been using biodegradable or compostable garbage bags for some time in an effort to be environmentally responsible. However, the government is forcing us to return to plastic bags.
There may be some reduction in bag usage because the costs will force people to stuff the bags fuller, but there might also be a greater chance of breakage. It also means that any bags people get from stores may simply go inside the government’s bags, instead of being used as garbage bags.
In insisting on the designated garbage bags, the government seems to be ensuring that plastic bags continue to be thrown into our landfills. If this is an example of how our government is being proactive about protecting the environment, we seem to be in trouble.
Erich Beck, Sai Ying Pun
