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Members of Congress from coal country are trying to boost a declining industry by pushing cryptocurrency and wasteful energy production, even as crypto prices crash. E&E News reporters Jael Holzman and Emma Dumain look at the claims being made by crypto supporters from both parties.
Sen. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, who made a large Bitcoin purchase in 2021, is planning to introduce a bill directing how the Securities and Exchange Commission should regulate the crypto market. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear last year signed a law giving crypto mining an alternative energy tax break with an explicit goal of making the state "a national leader in emerging industries which use substantial amounts of energy."
While some crypto miners have made pledges to shift to renewable energy, it hasn't happened yet. Estimates put the total carbon footprint of Bitcoin alone at 97 million tons of CO2, equivalent to the carbon footprint of the country of Kuwait. A single Bitcoin transaction requires more electricity than an average U.S. home uses in 75 days.
Luke Runyon's Colorado River road trip
2022 marks the 100th anniversary of the Colorado River Compact, an agreement between seven states that determines how the river's water is shared and used. In the latest episode of CWP's podcast, The Landscape, we talk to former KUNC reporter Luke Runyon about his 1,400 mile trip following the length of the river, from a cattle ranch in western Colorado to the Fort Yuma-Quechan Reservation in Southeastern Arizona.
Clarification: Monday's Look West stated that orphaned coal-bed methane wells in Wyoming were left behind for taxpayers to clean up. The funds for cleaning up those wells come primarily from a variable tax on current oil and gas producers which has dropped as low as zero in recent years.
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The data shows that cryptomining can have harmful impacts on local residents, including higher electricity costs, increased pollution, and weaker energy grids. Lawmakers have a responsibility to ensure that cryptomining does not harm vulnerable communities and exacerbate the climate crisis.”
