BREAKING: Article in Protocol Exposes Bitcoin Mining Threat to FLX

+ Albany Times Union editorializes against renewing Greenidge Generations permits & more

DRESDEN, NY (03/29/2022) (readMedia)-- Two days before the Department of Environmental Conservation is expected to announce its decision about Greenidge Generation's air permit renewal, Protocol published a new article outlining the threat the Bitcoin mining plant poses to the region. Located on the shores of Seneca Lake, Greenidge is a once-mothballed power plant that has been converted into a bitcoin mine by the private equity firm that owns it.

Read the article here.

"The first bitcoin mining rigs landed on [Greenidge's] property in 2019, and that operation has expanded at a steady clip since. To call it a power plant, at least in the primary public-use sense, almost feels disingenuous at this point. The plant took in $88 million in mining revenue against just $9 million for generating power last year. Last March, the company announced it wanted to install a total of 85 megawatts of mining capacity by the end of this year and a staggering 500 megawatts of capacity by 2025. That's the equivalent of enough electricity to power 400,000 or so homes, all being put toward mining crypto," writes Brian Kahn.

Featuring interviews with Yvonne Taylor, vice president of Seneca Lake Guardian; Rick Rainey, managing partner of Forge Cellars (a local winery); Anthony Ingraffea, emeritus engineering professor at Cornell; Assembly Member Anna Kelles; and Ken Campbell, Finger Lakes property owner, the article describes how Bitcoin mining works, and the important precedent DEC's decision will set, and what's at stake:

"If its air pollution permits are renewed, it would essentially signal that upstate New York's many aging or shuttered power plants are ready to become zombified on the cheap, too. Power plants in the towns of North Tonawanda, Somerset and elsewhere are already on the horizon - or already working - as mining operations. Together, they would create perhaps an insurmountable challenge for New York to meet its climate goals."

In addition to the new Protocol story, last week, the Albany Times Union published an editorial in favor of DEC denying Greenidge's permit:

"Though it provides some electricity to the grid, the 106-megawatt plant's main purpose is to power a crypto-mining operation and enrich its owner, Greenidge Generation. The energy needs for the cryptocurrency computer farm are enormous; just one transaction can take enough electricity to power a home for more than two months. This plant is not a bridge to a green-energy future. It should close.

Even more, the state should issue no new permits or renewals for any other fossil fuel power plants to serve crypto-mining operations. They run entirely counter to the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, the law the state Legislature passed in 2019 that called for dramatic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in the near future, including reducing carbon emissions by 40 percent by 2030 and by 85 percent by 2050, and generating 100 percent of the electricity used in the state from clean-energy sources by 2040."

The DEC has already confirmed that cryptomining is a threat to New York's energy goals as outlined in the CLCPA. In a Monday story published in the Albany Times Union, referring specifically to Greenidge, the Department of Environmental Conservation cast doubts about continuing operations:

"Greenidge 'has not demonstrated that the project is consistent with the attainment of statewide greenhouse gas emission limits established in the Climate Act.' The agency said that Greenidge has not yet shown how the operation would not hinder the goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

And at a recent Environmental Conservation budget hearing when asked about the potential impact of the escalating cryptocurrency mining activity in upstate NY on the states energy grid, the NYS Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) President Doreen Harris stated, "There could be a very significant impact on NY load resulting from cryptocurrency mining depending on the penetration of the resource."

More recent stories about crypto mining in New York:

Background

Located on the shores of Seneca Lake, Greenidge is a once-mothballed power plant that has been converted into a bitcoin mine by the private equity firm that owns it. The plant has brought only 48 new jobs to the region compared to the existing $3 billion agritourism economy, employing approximately 60,000 people, while poisoning the Finger Lakes' natural resources. Greenidge operates over 17,000 Bitcoin mining machines and is expanding to over 32,500, pumping dirty fossil fuels into the air 24/7. This will lead to over one million tons of CO2 emissions each year, equal to that of 100,000 homes. Greenidge also sucks 139 million gallons of water each day from Seneca Lake and dumps it back in at 108 degrees, risking toxic algal blooms that make this water source for 100,000 people non-potable.

The DEC's decision on Greenidge's air permit renewal was expected by January 31, but it was pushed back two months, allowing it to continue harming the community and expanding its operations.

Greenidge is part of a fast-growing, dangerous trend. New York now hosts 20% of the U.S.'s Bitcoin mining to the detriment of small businesses, local economies, the environment, and the climate. After China banned cryptomining, citing the environmental threats the practice poses to meeting emissions reduction goals, outside speculators have flocked to upstate New York to take advantage of the nonexistent environmental regulations. In addition to calling for a denial of Greenidge's air permits, advocates are calling on Governor Hochul to impose a moratorium on proof-of-work cryptomining.

The Governor is well within her legal authority to act, according to a new white paper released Monday by the Columbia Law School Sabin Center for Climate Change Law: A Pause on Proof-Of-Work: The New York State Executive Branch's Authority to Enact a Moratorium on the Permitting of Consolidated Proof of Work Cryptocurrency Mining Facilities. The paper (summary of findings available here) finds that the DEC can treat Greenidge's application not as a renewal but as a new request given its expanded activity as a Bitcoin mine. A new application would necessitate a Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) to determine the full extent of mining's impacts on the community, and require a pause on all activities until complete.

Proof-of-work cryptocurrency mining (which Bitcoin uses) is an extremely energy-intensive process that requires thousands of machines whirring 24/7 to solve complex equations. The more machines that are running, the faster a coin is mined. Each one of these machines requires energy to run, plus more energy to run cooling technology. Globally, proof-of-work Bitcoin mining uses the same amount of energy each year as the entire country of Argentina. It produces 30,700 metric tons of e-waste each year, comparable to the yearly IT equipment waste of the Netherlands. If left unregulated, the industry will wreak irrevocable harm on the entire state of New York, making it impossible to reach New York's crucial climate goals as outlined in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). The CLCPA commits to an 85% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2050 and 100% zero-emission electricity by 2040.

These facilities are also major emitters of methane and toxic air pollutants including benzene, formaldehyde and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are precursors of ground level ozone pollution and known causes of asthma, heart attacks, strokes, reproductive damage and preterm birth.

Powering Bitcoin mining with renewables is not a viable solution, as renewables supply cannot possibly meet the extreme energy demands of Bitcoin mining in addition to daily necessities such as heating and cooling homes and running cars. Any renewable energy that supports Bitcoin mining is renewable energy that is being diverted from the public grid. And when crypto miners rely on the public grid, they stick everyday New Yorkers with the bill. A 2021 study estimates "the power demands of cryptocurrency mining operations in upstate New York push up annual electric bills by about $165 million for small businesses and $79 million for individuals.

Cryptomining is also at odds with the overwhelmingly popular amendment to the state constitution passed last year, which guarantees every New Yorker the right to clean air, clean water, and a healthful environment. Revitalizing old polluting power plants for private financial gain, with drastic consequences for our air, water and climate, all while causing huge amounts of noise pollution, is now unconstitutional - and ought to be treated as such.

Reform groups Common Cause/NY and NYPIRG have specifically criticized the crypto mining industry for exploiting public resources and straining the energy grid for private gain, and a group of federal lawmakers led by Senator Elizabeth Warren recently requested details from six major Bitcoin mining companies about their electricity usage and contributions to climate change. Earlier this month, President Biden issued an executive order requiring federal agencies study the legal, economic, and environmental impacts of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin mining. Even the Mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, an avid crypto booster has come out against mining, declaring at a February 9th joint session of the Legislature: "I support cryptocurrency, not crypto mining."

More than 1,000 organizations, businesses, environmental activists, concerned residents, wine makers, elected officials, and more have taken action over the last year in opposition to crypto mining in New York State. A letter sent to Governor Hochul in October was signed by more than 650 individuals and groups. In letters to Governor Cuomo last year opposing Greenidge Generation's expansion from an emergency peaker plant to a 24/7 Bitcoin mining operation, organizations, businesses, and Finger Lakes residents demanded Gov. Cuomo revoke Greenidge's permits due to its massive greenhouse gas emissions, poisoning of the Finger Lakes, and noise pollution, with no economic benefit to the community. Greenidge Generation is still operating in Dresden, NY under grandfathered-in permits granted for use as a peaker plant, not 24/7 Bitcoin mining. Greenidge has applied for an air permit renewal and is awaiting a decision from the Department of Environmental Conservation. Similar fights have occurred in Plattsburgh and Niagara Falls, which resulted in local moratoriums.

Legislation (A7389B/S6486C) to place a 3 year moratorium on Bitcoin mining in New York State is picking up steam in the Assembly and recently passed the Environmental Conservation Committee with 41 co-sponsors including 15 senior-ranking Assembly committee chairs as of February 24.

About Seneca Lake Guardian

Seneca Lake Guardian is a New York State Not-for-Profit Corporation with 501(c)(3) and is dedicated to preserving and protecting the health of the Finger Lakes, its residents and visitors, its rural community character, and its agricultural and tourist related businesses through public education, citizen participation, engagement with decision makers, and networking with like-minded organizations.