How bad for the environment are blockchains, honestly? | WARC | The Feed

How bad for the environment are blockchains, honestly?

Generally, people know that blockchains consume huge amounts of energy but the reasons why and how to reduce it will be key to discussions of blockchain-based applications and Web3 in a time of climate crisis – here’s what you need to know.

Why it matters

A technology is going mainstream that appears to consume as much energy as it’s feasibly possible to consume. Single transactions on blockchains use the same amount of energy as an American household would use over months.

These transactions are now becoming a more and more important part of the marketer’s world, as brands start to get involved with digital tokens (NFTs) and begin to think about the possibilities that blockchain technology holds for them.

We need to understand what’s happening and what to do about it before investing in gimmicks that quite literally cost the earth.