Greenpeace Says Bitcoin ‘Questionably Refuses to Accept Its Climate Responsibility’

by James · September 18, 2022

On September 15, the day Ethereum completed its Merge upgrade, which marked the transition from proof-of-work (PoW) to proof-of-stake (PoS), the Amsterdam-based international environmental organization Greenpeace blasted Bitcoin’s use of “outdated” energy-hungry PoW consensus.

Greenpeace’s press release stated that “as ethereum, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, dramatically reduces its climate pollution, environmental groups have intensified pressure on bitcoin to meet or beat ethereum’s environmental performance.”

Before the merger, here’s what the Etheruem Foundation said about the change in Ethereum’s energy consumption:

“Ethereum’s energy consumption will be reduced by ~99.95% after The Merge from proof-of-work (PoW) to proof-of-stake (PoS). After the merger, Ethereum will use dramatically less carbon to be more secure.

“Since its inception, Ethereum has aimed to implement a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism, but doing so without compromising Ethereum’s vision of being a secure, scalable and decentralized blockchain has taken years of focused research and development.

“Therefore, the network started using proof-of-work consensus. Proof-of-work consensus requires miners to use the computer hardware to solve a puzzle. The solution to the puzzle proves that energy has been used by the miner, showing that they invested real value for the right to add to the blockchain.

“Both proof-of-work and proof-of-stake are just mechanisms to decide who gets to add the next block. Swapping proof-of-work for proof-of-stake, where the real value invested comes from ETH staked directly in a smart contract, removes the need for miners to burn energy to add to the blockchain. Therefore, environmental costs are drastically reduced by securing the network.“

“Change the Code, Not the Climate” is “a campaign launched by the Environmental Working Group, Greenpeace USA and several local organizations to pressure bitcoin, its miners and investors to support a change in software code that could abolish the intensive use and addiction of dirty power sources.”

Greenpeace said that this campaign, launched in March, would now “intensify its efforts with $1 million in new online ads” and that Greenpeace had launched “a petition asking Fidelity Investments to push bitcoin to follow ethereum’s lead in switching to an energy-saving protocol that dramatically reduces cryptocurrency’s contribution to the climate crisis.”

Michael Brune, director of the “Change the Code, Not the Climate” campaign, had this to say:

“With fires raging around the world and historic floods destroying lives and livelihoods, state and federal leaders and business leaders are scrambling to decarbonize as quickly as possible. Ethereum has shown that it is possible to switch to an energy-efficient protocol with far less climate, air and water pollution. Other cryptocurrency protocols have operated on efficient consensus mechanisms for years. Bitcoin has become the most extreme, defiantly refusing to accept its climate responsibility.“

And Rolf Skar, Special Projects Manager, Greenpeace USA, added:

“We are in a climate crisis and everyone has a responsibility to act. With ethereum’s transition to an energy-efficient protocol, it’s time for bitcoin to change. Companies that promote and profit from bitcoin, such as Fidelity Investments, BlackRock, Paypal and Block, have a responsibility to be part of building a better, climate-friendly bitcoin.“