Public Law Studies Quarterly

Cryptocurrency Mining and International Environmental Law: ‎Requirements and Challenges

Document Type : Article

Authors

Aramesh Shahbazi 1
Fahimeh Heidari Torkabad 2

1 Associate Professor of International Law Department, Faculty of Law and Political Sciences, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran

2 P.H.D student in international law, Faculty of Law and Political Sciences, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22059/jplsq.2023.339087.3037
Abstract
Greenhouse gas emissions in 2021 have returned to pre-pandemic levels, and it is expected that emissions will increase by 4.9% this year. One of the reasons for this increase is cryptocurrency mining, which relies on electricity generated from burning fossil fuels and electronic waste. Its impact on the environment, as a shared heritage of humanity, undeniably undermines the human right to enjoy a healthy environment. On the one hand, the potential for international organized crime, due to the anonymity of cryptocurrency transactions, tightens the connection of this issue with other branches of international law. Although green cryptocurrencies, such as Bitgreen, can herald a different form of trade, halt paper currency printing, and prevent the cutting down of thousands of trees, there are structural and normative weaknesses in drafting a treaty to impose restrictions on cryptocurrency mining. Given the long road ahead to achieve the goals of such a treaty, it seems necessary to manage this slow and less tangible crisis by resorting to existing customs and principles of international environmental law, while hoping for the actions of states at the national level (such as the imposition of taxes on cryptocurrency mining by the U.S. government). At the same time, we must acknowledge this phenomenon and take steps toward regulating the extraction and use of cryptocurrencies.

Keywords

cryptocurrencies
climate ‎changes
greenhouse ‎gases
international ‎environmental law.‎
Subjects

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Public Law Studies Quarterly
Volume 54, Issue 4
Winter 2025
Autumn 2024
Pages 2717-2746

  • Receive Date 22 February 2022
  • Revise Date 22 October 2022
  • Accept Date 30 January 2023

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