On March 26, Save Carbon County filed a lawsuit against Stronghold Digital, DEP, the Governor, Public Utility Commission over pollution from the cryptocurrency operations at the Panther Creek Power Plant in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

Save Carbon County hopes to see a decrease in the pollution of our air and water produced by Panther Creek Power located in Nesquehoning.

Stronghold Digital owns two “bitcoin mining operations” in Pennsylvania and these facilities use enough electricity to power approximately 1.15 million homes per year. 

The Nesquehoning site burns waste coal and tires to produce electricity for its bitcoin mining operation.  These fuels produced 430.4 tons of sulfur dioxide emissions and 291.5 tons of nitrogen oxide emissions in 2023. 

The group says the plant neither measures particulate emissions nor carcinogenic polyaromatic hydrocarbons which are specifically produced by burning tires. 

Stronghold’s two Pennsylvania bitcoin mining sites received $20 million in subsidies from the State of PA. in 2023.

The lawsuit alleges the defendants violated their trustee obligations under the Environmental Rights Amendment to the state constitution by--

-- Failing to control all emissions and harmful air pollutants from the Panther Creek Power Plant;

-- Failing to develop rules related to cryptocurrency mining;

-- Allowing Stronghold to burn waste coal and tires to fuel its crypto-mining operations; and

-- Failing to consider the concerns of local Carbon County residents during the permitting process.

The lawsuit asks for Stronghold's permit to operate be revoked until it eliminates "toxic and dangerous" emissions.

It also requests the court to revoke all tax credits and other subsidies to Stronghold because they were not intended to support private "vertically integrated' companies that provide “limited public benefits.” 

The credits were intended to support electricity generation for retail customers.

Click Here for a copy of the complaint in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

Related Article:

-- Carbon County Residents Urge DEP To Deny Stronghold Digital Mining, Inc. Request To Burn Tires To Fuel Its Cryptocurrency Mining Operation At The Panther Creek Power Plant  [PaEN]

[Posted: March 28, 2024]

4/1/2024