Did you know that old fossil fuel plants are being bought and expanded to mine cryptocurrency at several sites in New York?

Proof-of-Work cryptocurrency mining uses enormous amounts of energy to power the computers needed to authenticate transactions – should this activity expand in New York, it would drastically undermine our climate goals. According to research from the New York Times, globally, Bitcoin mining consumes more electricity than the entire country of Ireland, which is almost 0.5% of all electricity consumption worldwide.

Nearly 30 power plants in upstate New York have the potential to be converted to full-time operation for cryptocurrency mining. Help us fight back against this wasteful expansion of energy use before it sets a dangerous precedent!

Fight the Greenidge Fracked Gas Plant Expansion 

There is a proposal to expand the Greenidge fracked gas plant’s Bitcoin mining operation on Seneca Lake. Not only would this fuel the climate crisis, but it would raise the temperature of Seneca Lake, causing harmful algal blooms and stressing aquatic life. The Greenidge Facility is the first test for New York when it comes to addressing cryptocurrency mining and how it would impact the state's climate goals.

Prep Webinar for DEC Public Hearing on Greenidge Expansion
Monday, October 4, 2021 7pm - 8pm
RSVP here for the Zoom link | Facebook Event

Join Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter, Seneca Lake Guardian, Food & Water Watch and Earthjustice for a webinar, the Climate Consequences of Crypto-Currency: Speaking Out Against the Greenridge Fracked Gas Power Plant. This webinar will provide tips and tools for you to testify at the Virtual DEC public hearing on October 13th, 2021. 

DEC Public Hearings on Greenidge Expansion
Register here by Friday, October 8 at 10am to speak at these hearings.
Hearings will be held Wednesday, October 13 at 1pm and at 6pm

Testify against the proposed expansion of the Greenidge fracked gas plant! Oral comments may be limited to 3 minutes per person.

You may also submit a written comment by October 22 by emailing it to [email protected] 

Fight the Fortistar Fracked Gas Plant Transfer

A Canadian cryptocurrency company called Digihost is trying to buy the Fortistar North Tonawanda (FNT) fracked gas plant. If sold, this gas fired plant which currently only runs 20 days a year would run continuously 365 days per year to mine cryptocurrency, raising its CO2 emissions approximately 30x!

We encourage any and all individuals and organizations to submit written comments to the PSC opposing that transfer of ownership by October 12 on Case No. 21-M-0238 by emailing them to [email protected], or by submitting a comment here

Feel free to use Sierra Club’s suggested talking points here!