No Fracked Gas for Cryptocurrency Mining

There's something alarming happening in the Finger Lakes. A bitcoin-mining operator there has repowered the Greenidge power plant with fracked gas — using the formerly mothballed plant to power its energy-intensive operations. That means drastically more air and water pollution for the local community and terrible impacts for our climate.

What's more, there are dirty, shuttered power plants all over New York, and we know that crypto-mining operations are already attempting to repower others, meaning that Greenidge could be only the tip of the iceberg. Left unchecked, these operations could undo hard-won victories to shut down polluting power plants. We can't let that happen.

Governor Hochul's administration will soon decide whether to issue a crucial air permit for Greenidge, and it's up to all of us to ensure they deny the permit and shut this dirty power plant down for good.

Deadline Friday, Novermber 19: Submit a comment urging Governor Hochul and the Department of Environmental Conservation to protect our health and safety and stop the Greenidge fracked gas power plant!

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No Fracked Gas for Cryptocurrency Mining!

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Dear Governor Hochul and Dept. of Environmental Conservation,

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I urge you to deny the Title V Air Permit for the Greenidge Station in Dresden, NY. Put simply, this facility does not comply with the state's landmark climate law, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). We cannot hit the emissions reduction goals mandated by law if we allow dirty, shuttered power plants to come back online.

Greenidge's impact on the climate is obvious. Indeed, DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos has already stated, "Greenidge has not shown compliance with New York's climate law." We cannot add any new fossil fuel power plants to the state, full stop. Allowing a fracked gas power plant to operate solely to power a bitcoin mining operation that provides essentially no benefits to the public would be appalling.

Cryptomining is a relatively new technology that provides the basis for cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are virtual currencies, which means they exist only online and there are no physical notes and coins. Cryptocurrencies also don’t belong to a central bank, meaning they have no government backing. They are international currencies and can be used to send money around the world without any identity checks, making them a popular choice for cybercriminals involved in malicious or criminal activity. In the ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline, for example, the criminals were paid their “ransom” in cryptocurrency.

We must not allow the crytpomining industry to threaten the state's progress in reducing emissions. Greenidge is likely to become the tip of a very large iceberg if allowed to stay in operation. Bitcoin mining alone already uses more electricity than the entire country of Ireland. Indeed, the industry is already targeting other mothballed fossil fuel power plants across the state of New York.

Without state action, facilities like Greenidge threaten to destroy hard-won progress in shutting down the dirtiest power plants across the state.

I urge you to deny the Title V Air permit for the Greenidge Generation Station to shut this facility down for good.

Sincerely,

[First Name] [Last Name]
[Your Address]