Bitcoin mines aren’t just energy-hungry, it turns out they’re thirsty, too. The water consumption tied to a single Bitcoin transaction, on average, could be enough to fill a small backyard pool, according to a new analysis. Bitcoin mines are essentially big data centers, which have become notorious for how much electricity and water they use.
Bitcoin mines are essentially big data centers, which have become notorious for how much electricity and water they use.
The study was conducted by Alex de Vries, a PhD candidate at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam whose previous research has tracked cryptocurrencies’ electricity consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Those issues have moved legislators to push for more oversight of crypto mines’ environmental impact. But until recently, most of that attention has been on whether energy-intensive cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin might throw off countries’ climate goals.
Bitcoin mining also has the potential to stress water resources in drought-prone areas. Miners use specialized computers to solve puzzles around the clock to validate transactions and earn Bitcoin in return. All that computing power burns through a lot of energy. And like other data centers, many crypto mines also end up using a good deal of water in their cooling systems to keep machines from overheating.
“It’s sort of hard to surprise me, given how I’ve already worked on this topic I’m kind of used to big numbers popping up. But then again, the numbers are still mind blowing even to me every time I look at it,” de Vries told The Verge.
To conduct his analysis, de Vries estimated the direct water use from Bitcoin mines’ cooling systems. He also added their indirect water consumption associated with electricity generation, since power plants also use water in cooling systems. All in all, he found that cryptocurrency mining used about 1,600 gigaliters of water in 2021 when the price of Bitcoin peaked at over $65,000. That comes out to a small swimming pool’s worth of water (16,000 liters), on average, for each transaction. It’s about 6.2 million times more water than a credit card swipe, according to de Vries.
Of course, everything dipped in 2022 as the price of Bitcoin plunged and mining slowed. But the price has climbed back up since last year, rising from less than $20,000 to around $38,000 today. The higher the price, the more incentive there is to ramp up mining. That’s why de Vries expects the cryptocurrency’s water consumption to rise to a new high of 2,300 gigaliters worldwide this year. In the US, the biggest hub for Bitcoin mining in the world, Bitcoin mining uses about as much annually as a city the size of Washington, DC.
These numbers are estimates based on the assumption that the Bitcoin mines run on water-dependent cooling systems typical in large data centers. However, some data centers and crypto mines use a different system that keeps computers cool and cuts down water consumption by immersing them in a non-conductive liquid.
There’s another way to get the cryptocurrency to use a fraction of the water and electricity it eats up now and slash greenhouse gas emissions: get rid of the mining process altogether and find a new way to validate transactions. That’s what the next biggest cryptocurrency network, Ethereum, accomplished last year.
If Bitcoin was to do something similar, “all the electricity consumption, associated water consumption, that will just disappear overnight. You know, we can make it happen,” de Vries said. “Apparently, people still prefer to argue that the network isn’t as bad as we think it is, rather than actually trying to do something about it.”
FAQs
Bitcoin mines aren't just energy-hungry, it turns out they're thirsty, too. The water consumption tied to a single Bitcoin transaction, on average, could be enough to fill a small backyard pool, according to a new analysis.
Does Bitcoin mining use a lot of water? ›
Alex de Vries: Bitcoin miners in the US currently consume up to 120 GL of fresh water per year. This is enough to supply 300,000 households. However, Bitcoin miners in the US are not responsible for the largest share of the worldwide network's water footprint.
Does mining Bitcoin use a lot of electricity? ›
Bitcoin miners in the US are consuming the same amount of electricity as the entire state of Utah, among others, according to a new analysis by the US Energy Information Administration.
What is the water footprint of Bitcoin? ›
The water and carbon footprint of cryptocurrencies and conventional currencies. and using the same estimated water consumption factors for electricity generation per country, the water footprint of Bitcoin in 2021 was determined to be 1,573.7 GL (Data S1).
Which country is currently the biggest Bitcoin miner in the world? ›
The biggest bitcoin mining countries are: 1) The United States (40%) 2) China (15%) 3) Russia (12%) This map will look very different in 1-2 years as miners in Africa and Latin America expand operations. A massive trend in the industry will be miners migrating toward these regions.
How many gallons of water does a Bitcoin use? ›
Each Bitcoin transaction uses 4,200 gallons of water — enough to fill a swimming pool — and could potentially cause freshwater shortages. Water used for power and maintenance of Bitcoin servers adds more environmental issues.
Does Bitcoin mining use more water than New York City? ›
New estimates find billions of gallons needed to support cryptocurrency, fueling concerns about the environmental impact.
How much electricity does it cost to mine 1 Bitcoin? ›
The New York Times recently equated the total power consumed by Bitcoin annually to what's used by Finland in one year. The fact is that even the most efficient Bitcoin mining operation takes roughly 155,000 kWh to mine one Bitcoin. By way of comparison, the average US household consumes about 900 kWh per month.
How much electricity does 1 Bitcoin miner use? ›
How Much Electricity is Needed to Mine 1 Bitcoin? As a solo miner, an average of 266,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity is required to mine a single Bitcoin (BTC). This process would take approximately seven years to complete, demanding a monthly electricity consumption of about 143 kWh.
How long does it take to mine 1 Bitcoin? ›
How Long Does It Take to Mine 1 Bitcoin? The reward for mining is 3.125 bitcoins. It takes the network about 10 minutes to mine one block, so it takes about 10 minutes to mine 3.125 bitcoins.
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Bitcoin is off nearly 55% from its November peak, and 40% of holders are now underwater on their investments, according to new data from Glassnode.
Why does Bitcoin need water? ›
Based on data from previous research, de Vries calculates that Bitcoin mining consumes about 8.6 to 35.1 gigaliters (GL) of water per year in the U.S. In addition to cooling computers, coal- and gas-fired power plants that provide electricity to run the computers also use water to lower the temperature.
Is Bitcoin very liquid? ›
In general, crypto is less liquid than cash equivalents like US treasuries, but usually more liquid than real estate. The most traded cryptoassets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are most likely as liquid if not more so than gold. However, NFTs can be as liquid as stocks or as illiquid as property.
Can Bitcoin survive without miners? ›
Bitcoin mining typically uses powerful, single-purpose computers that can cost hundreds or thousands dollars. But Bitcoin as we know it could not exist without mining. Bitcoin mining is the key component of Bitcoin's “proof-of-work” protocol.
How many Bitcoin millionaires are there? ›
Key Takeaways. There are 88,200 crypto millionaires worldwide. 40,500 of these millionaires have amassed their fortune in Bitcoin (BTC). The number of global crypto owners reached 580 million by the end of 2023, according to Crypto.com.
What happens when all bitcoins are mined? ›
After all 21 million bitcoin are mined, which is estimated to occur around the year 2140, the network will no longer produce new bitcoin. The block subsidy will go to zero but miners will continue to receive transaction fees, which will make up an ever greater portion of the block reward.
Why does crypto mining use so much water? ›
Miners use water directly to cool their computer servers and indirectly by running both computers and air conditioning systems powered by gas- and coal-fired power plants that require cooling water. Some of the cooling water used by power plants evaporates and is no longer available for anything else.
Does mining use a lot of water? ›
Q1) Why do mines need water? Mining is a very water-intensive industry. In mineral processing, slurry transport, dust suppression, fire control, flotation, grinding, screening, dust scrubbing, wash water, pump gland seal water, reagent mixing, cooling of equipment, and to meet the water needs of employees.
Is Bitcoin mining bad for health? ›
But this process has real-world impacts. Each $1 of Bitcoin value created in 2018 was responsible for $0.49 in health and climate damages in the U.S. and $0.37 in China, researchers report in a new study. The reason is that cryptocurrency mining uses a lot of electricity.
Does mining take a lot of water? ›
While the mining, steel, and pulp and paper industries use a lot of water overall, typically much of that water is returned to the original source. "The main concern is withdrawals where the water is then incorporated into a product of some sort," Polytechnique Montréal's Dorner said.
