The US state of New York has imposed a two-year ban on cryptocurrency mining for environmental reasons. Companies should therefore no longer receive permits if they want to use old power plants to mine digital currency.
The US state of New York has issued a ban on some forms of cryptocurrency mining. To that end, Governor Kathy Hochul signed a new law into law. You report it, among other things, the Hon New York Times.
A corresponding moratorium will prevent crypto companies from using old fossil-fuel power plants to mine digital currency for two years.
Cryptocurrency mining: Bitcoin consumes as much electricity as a small country
How The limit reports that the main focus is the proof-of-work process used by Bitcoin. It is used to validate transactions. This form of mining is considered to be particularly bad for the environment because it consumes enormous amounts of energy.
For comparison: Bitcoin consumes the same amount of electricity every year as a small country. This is largely because miners use specialized hardware 24/7 to add verified transaction blocks to the blockchain.
New York wants to address the global climate crisis
The new law is the first of its kind in the United States and is seen as an important step for New York, Hochul said. We are working to address the global climate crisis.
In order to better understand the process, the legislation also requires the state to prepare an environmental impact study for trial mining.
Bitcoin: Ban on cryptocurrency mining, new blow to currency trading
After that China Bitcoin mining cracked down as early as 2021, New York has quickly become a new hub for cryptocurrency mining.
But this could soon come to an end and deal a major blow to the already struggling crypto trading. No wonder, then, that interest groups vehemently oppose the new law.
The industry group Blockchain Association, for example, spent an estimated $225,000 on lobbying to thwart the law in 2022. However, this attempt has apparently not been successful.
Environmentalists thank you
The nonprofit Earthjuice thanked Hochul. She set a precedent for the rest of the country and stuck to New York’s climate goals.
In 2019, the US state passed a climate law to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by at least 85% by 2050.
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