For immediate release
ALBANY, NY Today, the New York State Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee passed legislation (A7389C), to prohibit cryptocurrency mining. The vote comes shortly after the Department of Environmental Conservation. cast doubtThe Greenidge Generation Bitcoin Mining Facility is able to apply for permits in the Finger Lakes without threatening the state’s greenhouse gas emission reductions goals as stipulated by the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.
Now, companion legislation in senate, S6486D is awaiting movement through the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee. As the Bitcoin industry expands into the state, urgent action is required. New York City is now Minimum 20% of hostsBitcoin mining in the United States has led to detrimental impactson small businesses and local economies, the environment, the climate, and the climate.
Activists call on the Senate to pass this bill quickly through both houses. They also demand that Governor Hochul stop Bitcoin mining this session. A Recent white paper by the Sabin Centre at Columbia UniversityIt was clear that the legal case for Governor Hochuls to take action on this issue is strong.Eric Weltman, Senior New York Organizer for Food & Water Watch said:
New York needs to reduce the amount of fracked gas used in its communities. Bitcoin mining may re-power those fracked gas plants that New Yorkers have worked so hard for. Every time we delay another company is looking to shutter another gas plant upstate. We cannot allow Bitcoin to take root in New York. We must now pass a Bitcoin mining moratorium.
“New York State must take a step back from permitting further cryptocurrency facilities due to their massive carbon footprint, stemming from the computing power required to carry out the buying and selling of crypto coins,” said Richard Schrader, New York Legislative & Policy Director for NRDC (“Natural Resources Defense Council”). Our state has taken concrete steps to address the climate crisis with the CLCPA and crypto can’t get us sidelined. It’s time to deliver on the CLCPAs greenhouse gas and climate justice goals, and accelerate the transition to a healthy, equitable carbon-free New York.
We are thankful that a moratorium bill is moving in the Assembly, but we need the Senate’s support in order to protect communities like mine, said Yvonne Taylor is Vice President of Seneca Lake Guardian. This relatively new industry is not well understood and is causing many problems in small NY towns. It also doesn’t create many jobs and threatens our state’s bold climate laws. We expect our representatives to take the time to study crypto mining’s impact on air, water, climate, crops and jobs. They must do this now.
“Having passed New Yorks landmark Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, it is the responsibility of the Governor and the Legislature to ensure energy-hogging industries, like proof-of-work crypto mining, dont jeopardize our crucial climate goals, Liz Moran is the New York Policy Advocate for Earthjustice.We commend the Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee’s passage of this bill through committee. We urge the Senate to follow their lead. The Legislature has the chance to show climate leadership and prioritize community protection by passing this moratorium in this session.
Contact: Phoebe Galt, [email protected]
