Greenidge Generation has applied to the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to renew its Title V permit which will allow it to legally mine Bitcoin at its facility in Dresden, New York.
In 2016, the company’s Dresden operation, which mines about four Bitcoin per day, received its last Title V permit.
Since then, Greenidge Generation has been embroiled in an environmental debate, with detractors claiming that the facility’s bitcoin mining activities jeopardize New York state’s climate goals and hurt the ecosystem.
Many DeRoche, Earth Justice’s assistant managing attorney, told Decrypt earlier this year, “It’s not environmentally friendly.”
The facility’s operation, according to Abi Buddington, a Dresden resident, has warmed the neighboring Keuka Outlet. “It feels unreasonably warm when you dip your hand in the water,” she told Decrypt.
If the DEC does not renew Greenidge’s Title V permit, the company will no longer be allowed to mine Bitcoin at its Dresden site.
Without the permit, the company would be unable to create the $180,000 in Bitcoin it mines on a daily basis. Greenidge’s detractors, on the other hand, have other concerns.
The Dresden facility has been granted authorization to emit up to 641,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalents per year. This equates to 708 million pounds of coal burned, 116 thousand homes’ average annual power consumption, or 1.6 billion miles traveled by a passenger vehicle.
Despite the potential for Bitcoin mining to harm the environment, those close to the situation, such as DeRoche, say “these permits are reissued as business as usual.”
The New York Assembly failed to pass a bill earlier this year that would have put a temporary halt to the issuance of permits to Bitcoin mining sites due to environmental concerns.
Greenidge filed a bundle of documentation to the DEC on March 25 in support of their application to renew the Title V permit this month.
A note in that cargo was viewed by Decrypt, and it detailed the legal maximum emissions the facility could create.
Greenidge is in negotiations with Support.com about merging, but shareholder approval is required.
Greenidge CEO Jeff Kirt remarked earlier this year, “This merger is a crucial next step for Greenidge as we build upon our existing, integrated, and proven platform for Bitcoin mining and generation of reduced carbon, inexpensive power.”
The merger will “build upon Greenidge’s strong business by providing them with more financial funding and a public currency to fund their growth plans,” according to Support.com CEO Lance Rosenzweig. Greenidge will be listed on the NASDAQ if the deal goes through.
