This week’s Current Climate, which every Saturday brings you the latest news about the business of sustainability. Sign up to get it in your inbox every week.
Mining cryptocurrencies uses a lot of energy. According to the University of Cambridge, just Bitcoin’s annualized power consumption right now is about 135 terawatt-hours per year. That’s more than the entire country of Norway, and has implications for a world trying to move to net zero. As a result, the Biden Administration’s 2024 budget proposes a 30% excise tax on the electricity used for cryptocurrency mining operations. The tax would phase in over the course of several years and also require companies to report the type of energy they’re using to produce their crypto.
The Big Read
The Kingdom Of Bhutan Has Been Quietly Mining Bitcoin For Years
Beneath the Himalayas, rivers fed by ancient glaciers supply the tiny kingdom of Bhutan with immense stores of hydroelectricity. The renewable resource has become an economic engine, accounting for 30% of the country’s gross domestic product, and fueling the homes of nearly all of its 800,000 residents. But for the past few years, Bhutan’s royal government has been quietly devising a new use for these reserves: powering its very own bitcoin mine.
Discoveries And Innovations
bluShift Aerospace, which is developing a carbon neutral rocket using a non-toxic biofuel, had a successful test of its revamped engine this week.
Colorado-based startup Sunday, which has developed a product line for lawn maintenance without pesticides or harmful chemicals, released a report claiming that use of its products reduced 79,000 pounds of pesticides, over 2 million pounds of fertilizer and reported 141,000 pounds of plastic reduction for the year 2022.
Sustainability Deals Of The Week
A Deep Ocean Station: The Proteus Ocean Group has signed an agreement with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for use of the company’s Proteus undersea station, an underwater habitat where scientists and others can live beneath the ocean’s surface for long periods of time.
Geothermal Energy: The U.S. Department of Energy announced that it’s making a $165 million grant to a consortium of organizations developing a roadmap for the growth and development of geothermal energy.
On The Horizon
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has signaled it’s likely an El Niño event will emerge later this year. The phenomenon is caused by warmer than normal sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean, and can impact weather patterns all over the world. The agency estimates that climate change is increasing the frequency in which El Niño emerges.
What Else We’re Reading This Week
The Nuclear-Hydrogen Conundrum (Heatmap)
Where to Find the Energy to Save the World (Wired)
This Might Be the World’s Oldest Tree. And It Could Die of Thirst (Scientific American)
Green Transportation Update
Plug Power, which wants to be a leader in the market for “green” hydrogen made from water and renewable energy, has developed a new type of off-the-grid charging station for electric trucks and commercial vehicles. While that may be good news for drivers of Tesla vehicles, it may irk the company’s CEO Elon Musk, a long-time hydrogen critic, because the elemental fuel powers it.
The Big Transportation Story
Nikola Partners With Voltera To Build Up To 50 Stations For Hydrogen Trucks
Hydrogen trucks aren’t going to be a meaningful option for emissions reduction unless there are fuel stations to keep them powered up. Nikola, the financially struggling maker of battery- and hydrogen-powered heavy-duty trucks, said it’s partnering with Voltera, a startup that’s developing fueling infrastructure for zero-emission vehicles, to open up to 50 hydrogen stations across North America over the next five years. Later the same day, Nikola also got an order for 50 hydrogen fuel cell semi trucks from a big West Coast fleet operator. After the company’s rollercoaster ride the past few years, it needs all the good news it can get.
More Green Transportation News
Electric Vehicles Go Big [Infographic]
Electric Racing Team Veloce Thinks Web3 Can Make Audiences Bigger For Sustainable Motorsport
Waymo Hits 2 Million No-Driver Miles And Expands Phoenix Robotaxi Zone. Can It Replace Your Car?
New Chemix AI-Based EV Battery Development Reduces Or Eliminates Cobalt
EV Holdouts Growing, Study Shows
Read More: The White House Aims To Tax The Electricity Used To Mine Crypto