Last year, Missoulians stepped up and enacted an innovative, one-year safeguard against the massive energy hog known as cryptocurrency (a.k.a. Bitcoin).
Now it’s time to do it again.
On Thursday, March 26th the Missoula County Commission will vote on whether to extend that cryptocurrency protection for another year. Now is the time for them to hear from you!
Please use the tool on this page to submit a public comment.
The full suggested comments are displayed below.
To edit the comments click “Read or Edit the Petition” at the top in yellow. (Note: To close the box once done editing, click outside of the box, but still within this website.)
The March 26th County Commission meeting will be only online, but written public comment is still being taken before the meeting and there will be an option to give live public comment by phone. See this Missoula County page for info on how to give comment by phone (and much more info about this issue).
As a refresher, cryptocurrency operations (which produce Bitcoins) can seriously set back climate change efforts by consuming tremendous amounts of energy. As the New York Times described it, “There Is Nothing Virtual About Bitcoin’s Energy Appetite.”
A key feature of Missoula County’s current safeguards is that any new or expanded cryptocurrency operation must offset 100% of its electricity consumption with new renewable energy. This must be continued!
Suggested Comments Copied Below
Commissioners,
Thank you for your previous leadership in enacting Missoula County’s innovative and necessary protections from the negative impacts of cryptocurrency operations.
I urge you to extend these protections for another year and in the interim provide permanent protections.
These protections were the right thing to do before and they remain the right thing to do. Cryptocurrency operations threaten our neighborhoods with unbearable noise pollution, they threaten our efforts to reduce harmful waste with their electronic waste, and they threaten our efforts to mitigate climate change with their tremendous energy consumption.
Please continue to require the protections you previously enacted, including requiring that these facilities dispose of electronic waste properly and offset 100% of their energy use with new renewable energy.
Thank you again.
