Finger Lakes Crypto Factory to Meet DEC Requirements Next Week

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A controversial crypto-mining and power plant in Yates County is set to complete the installation of fences to better protect surrounding Seneca Lake days before the state’s deadline.

Greenidge Generation Holdings Inc. is expected to complete the installation of corner roll screens at the facility to prevent fish kills and offset impacts to the Seneca Lake ecosystem by the middle of next week. The state’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) extended the company’s deadline this fall to Jan. 20.

“We are a group of locals who really care about the lake, we are not a group of computer people as people might have us believe,” said Greenidge Generation President Dale Irwin. “Many of my teammates live and enjoy the lake every summer, every winter. We’re really excited that after 80 years of running this plant, we can put in place the best technology available to help protect the lake.”

The facility draws more than 130 million gallons of water from the lake each day and then expels water at around 108 degrees Fahrenheit into the water body, which the DEC says kills fish, eggs and all other aquatic life.

The DEC initially gave Greenidge five years to design, study and complete the project. Greenidge did not apply for the required Section 15 permit and a DEC water quality certificate until March 18, 2022. Public comments were accepted on applications until September 1 and the DEC issued authorizations to complete the work on September 27.

“The DEC subjects all environmental permit applications to a transparent and rigorous review process to protect public health and the environment,” according to a DEC statement on Friday.

Advocates who have been calling for improved protections for the lake’s aquatic life for years say the screens fall short, citing a DEC pilot study that shows they are about 77% effective.

“It does nothing to protect our water in terms of the withdrawal and discharge of heated water into our lake, which is partly responsible for our harmful algal bloom issues,” said Yvonne Taylor, vice president of Seneca Lake Guardian. . “It’s a toxin to humans and animals.”

Greenidge points out that the DEC has studied and approved the screens and process for several years, and that the plant meets state requirements.

The DEC reviewed and approved a thermal study criteria work plan for Greenidge, which submitted a thermal criteria study to the ministry on August 31, 2022. The DEC continues to review that study, according to the ministry.

“The installation of corner wire screens is part of the suite of technologies that make up the [best technology available]”, according to the DEC on Friday. “0.5 mm wide wedge wire screens with an inlet velocity of less than 0.5 feet per second and variable speed drive pumps represent [the best technology available] at the Greenidge plant. DEC expects the combination of these technologies to minimize the impact and entrainment of fish, juvenile fish and eggs. DEC expects this to be equivalent to the reductions the facility would have realized had it installed a closed-cycle cooling system.”

Greenidge is required to report to the ministry how successful improvements are in minimizing adverse effects on the lake.

Greenidge President Irwin added that critics don’t understand the process because it took the state years of study and evaluation.

“It takes years of study, engineering and procurement prescribed and a procedure sketched out by the DEC, the [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency] as a safety net, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” Irwin said. “…When we received this permit five or six years ago, we knew it was going to take five years.

Seneca Lake Guardian executives say they will file a lawsuit against the plant at the end of the month, alleging insufficient data to DEC on the impact of the spill on the lake and compliance with federal regulations on the water. Seneca Lake Guardian, along with attorney Earthjustice, filed a 60-day Notice of Intent to File a Citizen Complaint on November 17.

To complicate matters for the plant, recent reports show that Greenidge has millions of dollars in debt and could file for bankruptcy. A Greenidge spokesperson stressed on Friday that the company would not have completed the screens if it did not intend to continue operating, and the recent public filing shows how the company restructured its debt with a main lender. and improved its financial situation.

Conservationists say they won’t stop fighting to bring plant operations to a complete halt, regardless of any upgrades approved by the DEC.

“They’re in complete denial,” Taylor said. “I mean, it’s over. They have to shut down and, you know, let our community heal.”

Last June, the DEC denied Greenidge’s application to renew its air license due to its greenhouse gas emissions not meeting state climate emissions goals set in the Climate Leadership & Community. Protection Act of 2019.

Greenidge has appealed the decision and is allowed to continue operating during the ongoing hearings.

Greenidge Generation LLC’s emissions conference ended Wednesday, according to the DEC. The administrative law judge has scheduled a hearing for January 13 for the stipulation of facts to be agreed upon and signed by the company, DEC staff and the petitioners.

Greenidge’s brief is due February 1. DEC and petitioners must submit response briefs by March 1.

No further submissions are permitted unless subsequently authorized by the administrative judge, according to the DEC.

Congresswoman Anna Kelles looks forward to the DEC’s response and court ruling expected later this year.

“It will definitely impact Greenidge’s ability to move forward because if they don’t have an air permit, they can’t keep moving forward,” said Kelles, an Ithaca Democrat.

Factories like Greenidge are exempt from the state’s two-year moratorium on proof-of-work cryptocurrency mining operations. DEC will assess cryptocurrency mining and conduct a comprehensive assessment of the industry’s environmental impact over the next two years, including the state’s ability to meet its lofty climate goals established in the 2019 law. on climate leadership and community protection.

The information will guide what lawmakers do to regulate the industry, or factories like Greenidge, in the future. Lawmakers said today they have not ruled out other large-scale bans within the state’s industry.

The DEC has not notified Greenidge of possible inclusion in its study to date.

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