Summary
TLDR: PayPal’s internal research group suggests incentivizing bitcoin miners to use cleaner energy by giving them extra bitcoin rewards in certain transactions. The program identifies “green miners” using clean energy sources and directs extra rewards to them. However, there are concerns about non-green miners picking up these transactions and potentially driving up fees. Some in the Bitcoin community are skeptical of the idea, pointing out that miners are already moving towards renewable energy. The report does not specify the amount of the subsidy and suggests using smart contracts or the Lightning Network for private rewards if the public mempool solution fails.
Key Points
1. An internal research group at PayPal released a report on how economic incentives could spur bitcoin miners to use cleaner energy.
2. The report suggests stashing extra bitcoin rewards in certain transactions for miners using low-carbon energy sources to solve the environmental criticism of Bitcoin’s proof-of-work consensus mechanism.
3. The program would identify “green miners” who use clean energy or have a limited impact on energy grids, rewarding them with extra bitcoin through certain transactions with lower fees.