Ethereum scaling solution Polygon has unveiled the Green Manifesto which is deemed as a “smart contract with Planet Earth”. In a series of tweets, the layer-2 protocol has pledged $20 million as part of its efforts to mitigate the ecosystem’s environmental footprint entirely.
Speaking on the launch, Polygon Founder Sandeep Nailwal has called for more sincere efforts from blockchain firms to form a “united front” to fund and “leverage technology that helps heal the earth rather than destroy it.
The blog mentioned Polygon has taken the first step by purchasing $400,000 worth of high-quality and traceable BCT and MCO2 carbon credits, the equivalent of nearly 90,000 tons of CO2 emissions. It will then selectively retire the offsets within the carbon token pools that meet the highest standards for additionality and positive environmental impact.
The layer-2 solution is partnering with KlimaDAO, a decentralized collective of environmentalists, developers, and entrepreneurs which will also analyze the Polygon network’s energy footprint and support its emission management and mitigation strategy.
In addition to that, Polygon has also commissioned the Crypto Carbon Ratings Institute (CCRI) to audit its carbon footprint.
Polygon’s carbon negative comes ahead of Ethereum’s upcoming merge
Notably, the network’s pledge to sustainability comes ahead of Ethereum’s transition to a Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism, which will reduce the network’s energy consumption by almost 99 percent.
The team behind the project is also investing in cutting-edge zero-knowledge [ZK] technology that it claims will play a crucial role in onboarding the next billion users to Web3.
“Through our sustainability commitment and community-driven efforts, we can successfully address societal shifts, avoid the worst impacts of climate change, and meet the sustainable development goals set out by the United Nations,” Nailwal said.
As cryptocurrency makes quick inroads, environmental crusaders have been on the edge who allege that digital “mining” creates a massive carbon footprint due to the staggering amount of energy it requires.
According to a survey by Digiconomist, the carbon footprint of a single Ethereum transaction as of December 2021 was found to be 102.38 kilograms of CO2, which is “Equivalent to the carbon footprint of 226,910 VISA transactions or 17,063 hours of watching YouTube.
Nevertheless, the latest initiative by Polygon will pave the way for crypto creators around the world to switch to eco-friendly alternatives.