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A Shocking Situation: Burning Tires for Cryptocurrency Mining

It came as a shock for Carol Etheridge when she heard about the recent news of burning tires to fuel cryptocurrency mining in her neighborhood. Etheridge lives in the state of Pennsylvania, a few miles from the Panther Creek Power Plant in Nesquehoning, which now operates cryptocurrency mining on-site.

ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs terrible. I canÔÇÖt even believe that people would be allowed to burn tires,ÔÇØ Etheridge said.

The Carbon County in the Penn state has been neglecting the environmental impacts caused by the power plant for ages, stresses another resident Steve Chuckra.

ÔÇ£I grew up in Pennsylvania and I feel very strongly that we have a heritage of environmental neglect. And allowing things like this to happen is just continuing that bad heritage,ÔÇØ Chuckra added.

In 2021, Stronghold Digital Mining Inc. acquired Panther Creek to generate cryptocurrency, and until now, the power plant has received at least seven violations related to unpermitted air pollution under the stateÔÇÖs Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

Since the siteÔÇÖs acquisition, Stronghold Digital Mining workers transport coal waste from several sites, the largest being the Swoyersville dump site near Wilkes-Barre and separate usable coal from the massive piles and use it to generate electricity for crypto mining.

Some power is sold back to the grid for profit.

However, the Bitcoin (BTC) mining platform now wants to add a new fuel to its power generation mix ÔÇô waste tires.

Basically, they heat used tires to precise temperatures, resulting in components like steel (from belted tires), carbon black and tire-derived fuel (TDF). The fuel is then used as energy in turbines to generate electricity, which in turn powers an onsite cryptocurrency mining farm.

ÔÇ£TDFs are especially needed when the quality of the coal refuse is low in energy content,ÔÇØ Stronghold spokesperson Naomi Harrington told the Guardian after the company announced its plans to utilize energy for Bitcoin mining by burning tires in August.

The Panther Creek power plant recently submitted a permit proposal to the DEP, seeking permanent permission for tires to comprise up to 15%, or 78,000 tons, of its fuel. The firm presently holds temporary approval to test the use of TDFs.

Following this, neighboring residents and environmental organizations including Earthjustice, Clean Air Council, and PennFuture held a virtual press conference, urging the Department to reject the proposal, claiming numerous health hazards if approved.

On the other hand, miners find this unusual setup to mine Bitcoin as ÔÇ£profitableÔÇØ enough to justify finding unconventional sources of cheap or new energy generation.

Crypto mining in general is incredibly ÔÇ£energy-intensive.ÔÇØ For instance, Bitcoin alone is estimated to consume 110 terawatt-hours (TWh) a year ÔÇö 0.55% of global electricity production, or roughly equivalent to the annual energy consumption of countries like Sweden or Malaysia. As a result, the Bitcoin mining sector has been in a race to find the cheapest energy available.

How AI legalese decoder Can Help

In a situation like this, where the use of waste tires for cryptocurrency mining is causing concern among residents and environmental organizations, an AI legalese decoder can play a crucial role.

The AI legalese decoder is an advanced technology that specializes in converting complex legal texts into easily understandable language. By analyzing legal documents, permits, and proposals related to the Panther Creek power plant, the AI legalese decoder can provide clear and concise explanations of the regulatory aspects involved.

By using the AI legalese decoder, residents, environmental organizations, and even the Department of Environmental Protection can gain a better understanding of the legal implications, potential risks, and possible alternatives associated with the use of waste tires for cryptocurrency mining.

This technology enables stakeholders to make well-informed decisions based on comprehensible information, ensuring that the environmental and health concerns are addressed effectively.

Emissions Count at Large

For years, proper disposal of waste tires has been a serious environmental concern, given that all methods – burning, burying, and grinding ÔÇô come with their own ramifications.

For instance, the state of Colorado has the countryÔÇÖs largest waste tire graveyards, according to the Rubber Manufacturers Association. They are also a favorite breeding ground for mosquitoes; of particular concern in the age of Zika and West Nile viruses.

The state of Colorado imposed waste tire fees and separate legislation, and no matter what it tries to do, more waste tires are being produced than recycled.

Russell Zerbo, the federal advocacy coordinator at the Clean Air Council at Penn State, told Cryptonews that burning tires creates an abundance of harmful air pollution.

ÔÇ£Burning tires would increase polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) pollution from the Panther Creek plant in Nesquehoning, PA. PAH pollution includes many carcinogens.ÔÇØ

Per EcoMENA, an environmental hub in the Middle East and North Africa region, the fumes that are being released from tire burning have been shown to be extremely toxic to human health and harmful to the environment.

Apart from PAHs, open tire fire emissions include ÔÇ£criteriaÔÇØ pollutants, such as particulates, carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur oxides (SOx), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Furthermore, uncontrolled tire burning has been proven to be 13,000 times more ÔÇÿmutagenicÔÇÖ than coal-fired utility emissions, says EcoMENA. This means the fumes, if inhaled in the long run, are capable of inducing genetic mutations.

ÔÇ£This is not something that should be dumped on a county like Carbon County,ÔÇØ says Linda Christman, the president of the advocacy group Save Carbon County.

She notes that 36% of people living within one mile of the Panther Creek plant are below the poverty line. ÔÇ£The Department of Environmental Protection defines an Environmental Justice Area as any census tract where 20% or more individuals live at or below the federal poverty line,ÔÇØ Christman adds.

When asked whether there are any possible precautionary steps before going forward with such a plan, Zerbo stressed that burning tires ÔÇ£shouldn’t be allowed.ÔÇØ

ÔÇ£I don’t think there are any precautions that you could take. Crypto mining is a complete waste of electricity, and there are no sustainable ways to do it.ÔÇØ

Greener Ways

While there are still some debates about exactly how energy-intensive Bitcoin mining is, there are also discrepancies over how ÔÇ£greenÔÇØ it is.

A report from Cambridge researchers found that renewable energy makes up only 39% of minersÔÇÖ total energy consumption.

In December 2022, three U.S. lawmakers introduced a bill that urges crypto miners in the country to report greenhouse gas emissions.

Lena Klaaßen, co-founder of the Crypto Carbon Ratings Institute (CCRI), welcomed the legislation at the time, saying that there should be more transparency on the energy sources used for Bitcoin mining.

ÔÇ£In light of the imminent climate crisis, the priority should be on the decarbonization of the industry. To do so, it may help to align the incentives of all stakeholders active in the crypto industry,ÔÇØ she told Cryptonews.

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