Crypto miners are now putting environmental sustainability consciousness in mind during mining, Argo blockchain has also stated that this is a top priority for the company.
Argo Blockchain, a cryptocurrency mining company, stated on Tuesday that it has passed a significant milestone in its climate strategy, providing a clear indication that environmental sustainability is still a top priority for the company.
According to the firm, its crypto operations are now “climate positive” in terms of Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions.
Scope 1 emissions are direct emissions from a company’s owned or controlled sources; Scope 2 emissions are indirect emissions from the purchase of electricity; and Scope 3 emissions are all other indirect forms of emissions that occur in a company’s value chain, according to Carbon Trust, a global advocacy group for environmental sustainability.
Argo hopes to become carbon neutral and go even further by “mitigating emissions through the support of programs outside of Argo,” according to the business.
Argo joined the Crypto Climate Accord and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change as part of its Climate Positive Strategy.
When asked what it meant to be a “climate positive” miner, an Argo spokeswoman told Cointelegraph that the firm tracks its emissions and makes steps to reduce them.
This includes buying more certified emission reductions (VERs) for its forestry project in Tennessee and its energy efficiency initiative in China.
For these and other projects, the business has purchased nearly 30,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent VERs.
The company’s future ambitions, according to the spokesperson:
“Argo is in the process of developing its Helios site in West Texas, planned to commence operation in 2022. It will include 200 MW of electricity consumption coming mostly from renewable power.”
Following Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s announcement that his company would no longer accept Bitcoin (BTC) payments due to environmental concerns, businesses and other stakeholders have been thinking about how to offset the cryptocurrency industry’s carbon footprint.
Later, MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor established an industry body called the Bitcoin Mining Council to address mining sustainability concerns.
Bitcoin proponents believe that digital currency contributes a minuscule amount to global greenhouse gas emissions, especially when compared to the rest of the financial system. They also say that Bitcoin miners are increasingly relying on environmentally friendly solutions.
However, with the advent of ESG-conscious investing — an abbreviation for environmental, social, and governance standards — Bitcoin miners are under more pressure to demonstrate their green mining capabilities.
