Member of the United States House of Representatives Jared Huffman and 12 other lawmakers have asked the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, to assess cryptocurrency mining companies that may violate environmental statutes.
In a letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan on Wednesday, Huffman said that he and other Democratic members of the House had “serious concerns” about cryptocurrency companies in the United States that allegedly contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and do not operate in accordance with the Clean Air Act or the Clean Water Act. Lawmakers identified efforts to “reopen shuttered coal and gas facilities” as a means of producing power for cryptocurrency mining operations as a particular area of concern, as well as “energy-inefficient” proof-of-work mining for Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Monero (XMR) Y Zcash (ZEC).
“Cryptocurrency mining is poisoning our communities,” the letter said. “The ever-growing cryptocurrency industry needs to be held accountable to ensure it operates sustainably and fairly to protect communities.”
@RepHuffman isright: @EPA must address pollution caused by digital currencies like #bitcoin. #ChangeTheCode #CleanUpBitcoin https://t.co/3WVBQxNuXQ
— EWG (@ewg) April 21, 2022
In addition to air and water pollution as a result of energy production, US lawmakers noted “large amounts of electronic waste” due to cryptocurrency miners becoming obsolete, and “significant noise pollution” reported around communities with mining operations in New York, Tennessee and Georgia. Members of the House of Representatives, including Rep. Brad Sherman – who has previously called for a ban on cryptocurrencies in the United States – and progressive lawmaker Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, signed the letter in support of the action against the mining companies.
“We request that the EPA assess the compliance of PoW mining facilities with environmental statutes, such as the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, and engage with communities when reviewing permits,” says the letter to Regan. “In addition, we ask that the EPA investigate and address any harm these existing PoW facilities are causing to communities, including, but not limited to, ensuring that e-waste is disposed of responsibly, and noise pollution is reduced.”
“As cryptocurrencies continue to gain in popularity and demand more mining, we must ensure that communities are not left with the toxic burdens associated with this technology.”
The energy requirements of cryptocurrency miners remain controversial among policymakers in the United States and many other countries. Bloomberg reported in March that oil and gas giant ExxonMobil had been using excess gas from oil wells in North Dakota to run BTC miners as part of a pilot program launched in January 2021. In addition, a New York State Supreme Court judge recently dismissed a petition asking mining company Greenidge Generation to stop operations, saying the organizations had failed to show that residents would suffer “environmental harm” from the mining company. company expansion.
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