Is Blockchain the Key to Reducing Climate Change?
Simply put, blockchain is a ledger network technology and data structure that allows people to make highly secure electronic cash transactions with one another, without the need for a central administrator. The technology was developed to allow Bitcoin traders to buy and sell with one another, but it has a plethora of additional potential applications. For more detail on the nuts and bolts of blockchain, checkout this plain English primer.
Why Blockchain is Important for Solving Climate Change
Climate change should be of interest to anyone in the utility emergency preparedness field, as the phenomenon has increased the frequency and severity of large storms which directly correlates with outage frequency and duration. Renewable energy is one solution, but it operates within an inefficient market structure. This is where blockchain could save the day.
Blockchain could increase the efficiency with which people trade or sell, for example, excess solar energy to other people, utilities, or investors. Because blockchain would make these transactions easier and more efficient, it would in theory spur more people to adopt renewable energy, which in turn would attract additional investment dollars for new clean energy projects. Read this article for a more detailed overview of how this might work.
The net result would be an increased percentage of electricity coming from clean sources, which is critical when you consider that a whopping 35% of carbon emissions in the U.S. come from the electricity industry.
Of course, the technology is probably years away from being implementable, but once it is ready for prime time, the impact could be dramatic. The bottom line is that the warming climate, while good for business, is bad for utilities and consumers, and therefore I am pulling for blockchain to live up to its potential within the energy industry.
