The race to ‘decarbonize Bitcoin’ accelerates with Decarbbitcoin Lab initiative

Decarbbitcoin Labs, an environmentally-focused think tank founded by Community Electricity, is taking a hands-on approach to fighting climate change in California — and is using Bitcoin (BTC) mining as its first prototype.

Building off California’s Environmental Justice Program, whose mission is to protect communities that endure a disproportionate share of environmental pollution, Decarbbitcoin Labs is developing a first-of-its-kind prototype in Los Angeles aimed at not only decarbonizing the community but also proving how green Bitcoin will be mined.

Austin Davis, co-founder of Community Electricity, told Cointelegraph that Environmental Justice Communities across the state receive over $1 billion in funding for various decarbonization efforts, including clean electrification of real estate and transportation sectors. “These attributes represent lower cost and locally produced clean electricity, and of course minimizes the capex [capital expenditure] on the asset implementation,” he said.

Decarbbitcoin Labs is bundling all these attributes and applying them to a new strategy centered around Bitcoin mining. Davis explained:

“DecarbBitcoin Labs is implementing the first prototype of its kind in Los Angeles that will mine 100% Green Bitcoin at origin at a very competitive price for mining pools. The proof of value will be a 1MW block.”

Despite offering one of the most transparent monetary systems ever created, Bitcoin has been heavily criticized for its carbon emissions. It’s estimated that Bitcoin’s proof-of-work mining produces 45.34 megatons of carbon dioxide every year.

The state of California was one of the first to codify environmental justice. The state also provides Environmental Justice Small Grants, which provide funding for nonprofit community organizations, up to a maximum of $50,000.

Decarbbitcoin Labs is a member of the Climate Crypto Accord alongside blockchain-focused firms such as CoinShares and ConsenSys. The accord, whose mandate is to reduce the carbon footprint of the booming cryptocurrency industry, is inspired by the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, a legally binding international treaty on climate change adopted by 196 parties.

Among the accord’s various initiatives is to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2030.