Note
This issue is caused by third-party game overlay apps. Please disable Discord overlay, Steam overlay, Riva Tuner, etc. for Minecraft: Java Edition.
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When in spectator mode if you go underground you should see through the ground which doesn't happen, in fact you still see the textures of the blocks on the ground.
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Do you use any resource packs? If so, does disabling solve the issue?
Otherwise, please provide a screenshot with the F3 screen enabled.

https://fuze.tv/XiLudo/post/605bc0bc9003ad00162c6a6a here's another clip with f3 menu.
MC-220428 may be relevant or even the same issue.

Could not reproduce in 21w14a
also: newest version of Radeon RX 580 Drivers: (version 21.3.2)
https://www.amd.com/en/support/graphics/radeon-500-series/radeon-rx-500-series/radeon-rx-580

Was able to reproduce in versions 21w10a and above, here is my log for the error
[media]
I have the same problem, and there are MANY Open GL Error Messages (over 300 per second) i´ll attach the log here.
[media]Edit: I had to zip it, because it was too large.

also having same issue. i thought it was just me.

Taking 21w18a off the confirmed list, since there's no substantial info pointing to it still occurring in that version. If it does, please add up to date screenshots and reopen.

Was able to reproduce in 21w19a. the attachments include the log, a forced f3 crash, and an f3 screenshot.
[media]
added 2 more screenshots, both with f3. confirmed still an issue in latest snapshot.
Reopened due to MC-225910 and comments.
One of the crash logs seems to suggest that fixed-function GL functions are being called, despite us now using a GL 3.2 Core context and all these functions being entirely removed from the game.
Is anyone able to reproduce this issue using any game overlay apps? Discord overlay, Steam overlay, Riva Tuner, etc. There's a chance that these are assuming Minecraft is still GL 2.1 and are using unsupported GL functions.
EDIT: fuze.tv is the culprit

for me the culprit was overwolf, it still hasn't got the perfomance i have on 1.16, but at least now it's playable.

This is caused by third-party software.

for those of us less technical savvy, is there any suggestion on how to fix this? the block rendering issue is still present in the latest snapshot/pre-release

The same issue is still present in 1st prerelease of 1.17 - I guess some incompatibility with OpenGL.
My machine is:
Windows 10 Insider Preview build 21390.1
Intel Core i5+ 8th Gen
nVidia GeForce GTX 1050
16GB DDR4 RAM
2TB SSD
16GB Intel Optane
I've got pure vanilla for 1.17 prerelease, no overlay, no modification, so there's no way that this is caused by a 3rd party software. This seems to be hardware issue, or rather hardware incompatibility with the renderer engine. Doesn't happen in 1.16.5, doesn't happen in earlier snapshots of 1.17. Why is this invalid? Obviously your renderer doesn't seem to work correctly on some graphics cards.
[media][media]
This is current state in 1.17-prerelease-1 snapshot. These are lava-filled caves.
P.S. - It is worth to mention that I am playing on a laptop and I cannot actually change my GPU, I would have to change entire motherboard. Not even nearly in my budget to do that, not even nearly my budget to buy a new machine. My hands are tied in this case.

@Gabby Uninstall any incompatible software like Discord/Steam overlay, etc.

What solved it for me was uninstalling intellij, a java made development tool

Still having this issue even on 1.17 release build, no overlay software installed, reinstalled MC completely. Using an RTX 2060
Can you attach a screenshot of this happening with the F3 debug menu enabled?