Congo’s Virunga National Park has decided to use Virunga’s river hydroelectric power plant to power a $200,000 Bitcoin mining rig. The plant has been built, and plans are in place to gradually add to the energy network. By launching the Bitcoin mining project, park director de Merode’s team hopes to earn some profit to make up for the lack of income while providing a viable way to use its hydroelectric resources for the benefit of the park and local residents. The mining rig was provided by cryptocurrency investor Sébastien Gouspillou.
In addition, Virunga’s gorillas are an endangered species, and the park has partnered with the NFT project Cyber Kongz to provide the park with an additional $1.2 million by auctioning the gorilla NFT at Christie’s. (Technology Review)