EPA Acknowledges Plans to Look at Crypto Energy Usage, Emissions

The EPA is working on recommendations from a September White House report that raised grave concerns about cryptocurrency’s effect on the climate, the agency told lawmakers in a letter.

The agency recently sent a response to 23 House Democrats who had asked the Biden administration for more information about efforts to address cryptocurrency’s energy usage and emissions, according to a copy of the letter seen by Bloomberg Law.

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The EPA’s response has mollified Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), who has repeatedly urged the agency to take a hard look at whether cryptocurrency facilities are complying with the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and other environmental statutes.

“It’s good to see the administration directing attention to this important issue. The crypto warning lights are flashing, and it’s not just high-profile bankruptcies and shady investment schemes that require accountability and government oversight,” Huffman told Bloomberg Law on Nov. 18, apparently referring to the recent collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. “It’s also the huge environmental impacts ‘proof of work’ crypto is causing.”

Huffman pledged to keep monitoring the EPA’s progress and pushing the agency to “step up and address these significant environmental and climate impacts.”

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