The environmental burden of the United States’ bitcoin mining boom
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Bitcoin mines—massive computing clusters generating cryptocurrency tokens—consume vast amounts of electricity. The amount of fine particle (PM2.5) air pollution created because of their electricity consumption, and its effect on environmental health, is unknown. In this study, we located the 34 largest mines in the United States in 2022, identified the electricity-generating plants that responded to them, and pinpointed communities most harmed by Bitcoin mine-attributable air pollution. From mid-2022 to mid-2023, the 34 mines consumed 32.3 terawatt-hours of electricity—33% more than Los Angeles—85% of which came from fossil fuels. We estimated that 1.9 million Americans were exposed to ≥0.1 μg/m3 of additional PM2.5 pollution from Bitcoin mines, which were often hundreds of miles away from communities they affected. Americans living in four regions—including New York City and near Houston—were exposed to the highest Bitcoin mine-attributable PM2.5 concentrations (≥0.5 μg/m3) with the greatest health risks.
Source: Nature Communications
Language: English
Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $6,990
Awards: OCCUPATIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH, Susceptibility and adverse health outcomes related to climate-sensitive events among older Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer and Dementia, G2161500297, G2203425516, G2266256919, G2793500575, G3110031625, G3411164788, Characterizing the link between multiple environmental exposures and Parkinsons disease exacerbation, G3850548428, G388354178, G4013451443, G4138129, G4270317969, G516997472, Air Pollution, Heat, Cold, and Health: Disparities in the Rural South, Integrating Air Pollution Prediction Models: Uncertainty Quantification and Propagation in Health Studies, G625211643, G6593921367, SCH: Synergizing Topological Deep Learning and Spatio-Temporal Causal Inference to Unpack Health, National Cohort Studies of Alzheimer's Disease, Related Dementias and Air Pollution
OpenAlex ID: W4408865348