Legislators in the US want to know about potentially problematic energy use and emissions for crypto mining. What will they find?
Democratic legislators from both houses of the United States Congress have sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency and Energy Department to inform them of their findings on the energy consumption of cryptocurrency mining and asking the agencies to require mining to report their emissions and energy use.
The energy use of crypto miners is driving up prices for other consumers, the letter claimed, citing government and academic studies. It dismissed the responding miners’ claims of energy efficiency, saying, “These and similar promises about clean energy use obscure a simple fact: Bitcoin miners are using huge quantities of electricity that could be used for other priority end uses that contribute to our electrification and climate goals.
My investigation shows that cryptominers use an exorbitant amount of energy with little to no public disclosure. Regulators should require more transparency so all Americans can understand crypto's impact on our local communities and planet.