Regulatory Issues | Mining hearing sees peaceful exchanges, majority of mining companies not invited to attend seen as a missed opportunity

The Congressional Subcommittee held a hearing on the environmental issues related to cryptocurrency mining, despite ongoing criticism over the energy consumption of mining in the past year. Elon Musk's decision to stop accepting Bitcoin payments also attracted significant attention. However, the hearing was relatively peaceful, with committee members mostly asking questions to better understand the principles of blockchain technology. The absence of most mining companies invited to attend the hearing was seen as a drawback.

Blockchain Knowledge

Representative Diana DeGette opened this hearing with a discussion on potential use cases of blockchain. She stated:

Our focus is on reducing overall carbon emissions and discussing how to increase the share of green energy in mining activities. The unique energy demands of the crypto mining industry do bring potential benefits, but how to apply and leverage them remains to be seen.

Statements from various committee members include:

• Representative Diana DeGette: Why can't Bitcoin transition to a Proof of Stake (PoS) mechanism for equity verification?
• Energy Committee Chairman Frank Pallone: We can no longer heavily rely on fossil fuel energy sources, especially when green energy has already reached a certain scale.
• Representative Howard Griffith: Mining energy consumption has surpassed that of some small countries; can our energy infrastructure support such high levels?
• Representative Cathy Rodgers: The demand for blockchain talent and funding has significantly increased. What long-term applications will blockchain have?
• Representative Neal Dunn: The best way to address the environmental issues of mining is to bring it to the U.S., away from China and Kazakhstan.

CEO of mining firm Bitfury, Brian Brooks, supported his points with data, stating that in 2021, 58% of Bitcoin came from renewable sources, including wind, hydro, solar, nuclear power, and carbon offset mechanisms. The U.S. has a 31% share of green energy, higher than Bitcoin's green energy ratio. He emphasized that decentralization is the foundation of cryptocurrency, with Bitcoin being the most decentralized.

Cornell University tech professor Ari Juels pointed out:

I want to emphasize that Bitcoin does not represent blockchain. We should be grateful to Bitcoin for bringing blockchain into the world, but we have more energy-efficient alternatives. For the environment and U.S. energy infrastructure, I believe we need to embrace these new choices, despite the "rich get richer" issue in PoS mechanisms.

Gregory Zerzan, a shareholder at law firm Jordan Ramis, stated:

The wind doesn't always blow, and there isn't sunlight 24 hours a day. Often, green energy is not consumed but wasted. The advantage of cryptocurrency mining is that it can utilize almost all the energy that would otherwise be wasted.

Incomplete Attendance List

Despite the seemingly productive dialogue between both sides, Coin Metrics co-founder Nic Carter expressed dissatisfaction because no publicly listed U.S. mining companies were included as witnesses. He pointed out:

Core Scientific, Riot Blockchain, Marathon, Atlas Mining, Stronghold, Galaxy, Foundry USA were not invited. It's like holding an electric vehicle hearing without inviting Tesla. It's meaningless, but not surprising. Brian Brooks' testimony was very well-received.