Have you been feeling the pinch of your electricity bill slowly rising over time? You're not alone. While inflation gets blamed for everything these days, there's a less obvious, more insidious culprit at play: Bitcoin mining. Yes, that Bitcoin. Your money is quietly being taken by the digital gold rush that promised to revolutionize finance as we knew it. It’s doing so one kilowatt-hour at a time.

Bitcoin's Thirst Driving Up Prices?

Let's be clear: I'm not here to bash Bitcoin. The underlying technology, blockchain, has real potential. While we can and should celebrate blockchain’s tremendous potential, we need an honest conversation about the unintended consequences of its energy-hungry mining process.

Think of it like this: imagine you live in a small town with a limited water supply. Boom, a huge factory comes to the area, sucking down every drop of water around the clock. What happens? At times, the town teetered on the brink of running dry. If that occurs, the water utility has to make expensive improvements, and you, the ordinary resident, will be charged more for your water.

That’s exactly what is occurring with Bitcoin mining and our energy grids. These giant data centers, whose sole purpose is to work out difficult mathematical equations to create new Bitcoin (known as “mining”), use mind-boggling amounts of electricity. In fact, some estimates indicate that Bitcoin mining will soon use up to 2.3% of all U.S. electricity. That’s more than half of our nation’s power.

And where does that power come from? Ideally, renewables, right? Solar, wind, hydro – the feel-good stuff. The reality is far less rosy. A significant amount of Bitcoin mining, particularly in the U.S., is still powered by these dirty fuels. We're talking coal and natural gas. Another study estimated that 85% of the electricity consumed for Bitcoin mining is powered by such sustainable resources. So not only are you possibly paying a premium for electricity, but you’re unwittingly doing so while polluting the environment in the process. Joy!

Here's the kicker: this isn’t just an abstract environmental concern. It's impacting your wallet right now. As Bitcoin mining operations overload the grid, utility companies are left with no choice but to upgrade infrastructure. And guess who foots the bill? You do, through higher rates. Some mining heavy regions, like Plattsburgh, NY, are already experiencing acute housing shortages and corresponding price increases due to the influx of demand from mining businesses. Whether or not you buy crypto directly, you’re funding the person that does.

Pollution Affecting Your Health?

Beyond the pocketbook aspect, let’s think about how this affects our health. The reliance on dirty fuels for Bitcoin mining contributes to PM2.5 pollution – tiny particulate matter that can penetrate deep into your lungs and bloodstream. This pollution contributes to asthma, cardiovascular disease, and even premature mortality.

One of those studies estimated that 1.9 million Americans are exposed to increased PM2.5 pollution from Bitcoin mines. That's a staggering number. So, even as some are getting stinking rich off of Bitcoin, others are paying the price with their health—and their wallets. Is that really the trade-off we are willing to accept?

Can Renewables Solve The Problem?

The simple answer is to move Bitcoin mining over to the renewable grid. To be fair, the industry is doing better. Getting the facts right Some reports have further claimed that more than 40% of mining is powered by renewables such as wind and hydropower. That's a step in the right direction.

Renewable energy isn't a magic bullet. It's intermittent. After all, the sun doesn’t shine every day, and the wind doesn’t always blow. And even with advancements in battery storage, relying solely on renewables to power something as energy-intensive as Bitcoin mining is unrealistic in the short term.

In addition, expanding new renewable energy infrastructure just to subsidize Bitcoin mining seems misguided, if not immoral. Shouldn’t that energy be used to power our homes, schools, hospitals—anywhere—before we fill up our tanks? It’s a matter of priorities.

Maybe the solution is improving mining to be more energy-efficient and sustainable, or moving those operations to places where we have excess renewable energy. Perhaps we should impose tougher limits on the energy use of Bitcoin on an ongoing basis. Instead, we should take the promise of Bitcoin to heart. Now it’s time to balance those benefits against the very real and tremendous economic and environmental damage those projects cause.

The conversation needs to start now. Don’t allow your growing energy bill to be yet another quiet victim of the Bitcoin boom. Demand transparency from your utility companies. Ask where your electricity is coming from. And most importantly, be informed. The future of our energy grid – and your pocketbook – depends on it.