"but not everyone is happy as environmentalists are concerned about bitcoin mining's damaging effect on the land as the cryptocurrency's value halves" REYKJAVIK, April 15 -- Marco Streng first visited Iceland to solve a simple problem. His bitcoin-computers were using ever more energy and the remote North Atlantic island had massive amounts of electricity at inexpensive rates. He travelled no more than three kilometres from the airport terminal to an abandoned airstrip built by allied forces in World War II. This was in 2014 and the barren, windswept ground then seemed like an unlikely place for a financial district. The strip is now where international companies "mine" for bitcoins and other virtual currencies. Powerful computers, stacked inside long and grey warehouses, use more electricity than all Icelandic homes combined, according to a local energy firm. "People don't give me a funny look any more when I explain my plans," Streng said. Raised in Bavaria, Germany, the 29-year-old was a maths prodigy on a glowing academic track until he began collecting digital coins. Being a bitcoin entrepreneur is the only job Streng has ever held. The new industry's relatively sudden growth is yet raising serious concerns for its environmental impact. Iceland's energy comes from hydroelectric dams and geothermal power plants, creating electricity without carbon emissions. But this "green" energy is not entirely environmentally friendly. Hydroelectric dams sink untouched land under water and alter rivers and waterfalls. Geothermal power plants are built over natural hot spring areas, spoiling the unique landscape. "Iceland still has one of the biggest wilderness areas in Europe," said environmentalist Tomas Gudbjartsson, protesting the expansion of energy-infrastructure. "We will simply destroy these areas if we continue." Energy demand has developed because of the soaring cost of producing and collecting virtual currencies. Computers are used to make the complex calculations that verify a running ledger of all the transactions in virtual currencies around the world. In return, the miners claim a fraction of a coin not yet in circulation. In the case of bitcoin, a total of 21 million can be mined, with about 3.3 million left to create. As more bitcoins enter circulation, more powerful computers are needed to keep up with the calculations - and that means more energy. According to Dutch bitcoin analyst Alex de Vries, who operates a Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index on the website Digiconomist, bitcoin energy consumption is still on the rise globally, after receding late last year following a drop in value. Earlier this month, authorities in China, where coal-rich regions host the world's biggest cryptocurrency mining farms, announced plans to crack down on the industry completely, claiming massive energy waste and pollution. The move is expected to load pressure on Iceland and other areas still welcoming the business. "They are great customers," said Johann Snorri Sigurbergsson, business development manager at the local energy firm HS Orka, as he praised the bitcoin farms for steady and stable energy usage. "The computers are just always on, always running on maximum capacity." HS Orka provides electricity to the southwestern Reykjanes peninsula where the cryptocurrency "farms" are largely based. Over the past year, the region's energy supply has been nearly exhausted and HS Orka is expanding its capacity with a hydroelectric dam in the remote Tungufljot river, near the Great Geysir hot spring tourist attraction.
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