The societal effects of industrial scale bitcoin mining

[alani123]

Newly released video highlights the effects industrial bitcoin mining can have on society:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7_WDzPyoqU

Marathon Digital Holdings has been running industrial scale BTC mining operation in Texas with complete disregard as to what effect their operations can have on local communities.

They're essentially blasting industrial levels of noise into everyone's household. There's no way to shield yourself from 85 decibels of noise. This is the legal limit in texas, which mind you, is very relaxed in terms of regulation. OSHA dictates that when noise is constant above 85 decibels in a workplace, the employer must implement hearing protection measures for workers exposed to these levels of noise.

But in Texas, this bitcoin mine is allowed by politicians to blast noise levels over 100 decibels into resident's homes without any issue.

Moreover, the mining operations get favourable electricity rates while residents end up paying the premium. All at a time that the water supply is also scarce, and we all know industrial scale bitcoin mining needs tons of water for cooling.

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

[Medusah]

Yeah, you definitely can't live next to this.  If I were the people living next to Marathon, and there was absolutely nothing that I could do at the City Hall level, I'd put the house for sale.

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

If I came next to your house, with loudspeakers, playing music loudly enough to be under the legal limit, would you still support the idea of loudspeakers?


People who think "crypto money" buys politicians are for a serious wake up call on what fiat money is capable of.  Bitcoin mining does consume a lot of electricity, does produce a lot of noise, but it provides the world an alternative to a system that is responsible for most of genocide and poverty.  There's nothing as morally imperative as ending central banks, and bitcoin is the only way to do that.  People who wouldn't support bitcoin mining because of this, are completely blind and hypocrites, as they consequently show support for the alternative debt-slavery system that is responsible for a lot more evil. 

[ABCbits]

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

It's easy to blame Bitcoin or Bitcoin mining. But the bigger issue is Texas have poor law and law enforcement.

Yeah, you definitely can't live next to this.  If I were the people living next to Marathon, and there was absolutely nothing that I could do at the City Hall level, I'd put the house for sale.

No sane people would buy house on that area without relative low price though.

[philipma1957]

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

It's easy to blame Bitcoin or Bitcoin mining. But the bigger issue is Texas have poor law and law enforcement.

Yeah, you definitely can't live next to this.  If I were the people living next to Marathon, and there was absolutely nothing that I could do at the City Hall level, I'd put the house for sale.

No sane people would buy house on that area without relative low price though.

If you are deaf and get a 20% discount it is a great place to live.

So the real problem is no one is recruiting deaf buyers. <sarcasm to those that are literal.

Back to cheap power cost vs high power cost. that mine provides a service to the power company as it shuts off when it is too hot and the power company is able to shunt the power to homes that need ac.

as for water use that mine goes air cooled and I have evidence they use water cooling

I do agree with one thing if it is the loud the owners of the company need to live in the homes so they can feel the sound.

[NotFuzzyWarm]

Did anyone bother to read the introduction to that vid?

We went to a small Texas town where one Bitcoin mining facility uses as much power as the entire city of Austin.

Note the use of 'We went to' - as in they do not live there but rather go around looking for clickbait they can rant about.

btw: That is actually a story that came out last year and has already been discussed here (and rightfully shortly died after a few days), the vid seems to just be a new rehash of it.

Yes Mara should put in sound deflecting berms so the noise does not just go rolling over the plains to annoy folks.
As Phil said, Texas has the farms to act as massive base loads to balance their equally massive wind/solar power production. Remember, Texas is NOT well connected to the rest of the US grid and in most weather a huge part of their power production would go unused because there is no way to export & sell it to other states meaning no incentive to expand it. With the mining farms the excess power is used and when hot weather arrives the mines throttle back so power can be used elsewhere in Texas for cooling needs.

As for the OP saying

All at a time that the water supply is also scarce, and we all know industrial scale bitcoin mining needs tons of water for cooling.

No it doesn't and never has. In the past most mining farms were air cooled. With the newest ones using water cooling, it is a closed loop with the water going from cooling towers > pumps > miners > back to cooling towers being endlessly recycled. Once the cooling systems are filled very little water is further consumed. Hydro cooling is also far far quieter because there is not literally 10's of thousands of small high speed fans screaming away cooling off the miners.

[joniboini]

Looks like the company behind this is quite popular. The recent news about them seems to focus more on how they increase the number of Bitcoins in their wallet, though, with little to no mention of their mining activity. If it's old news and the video is just a repeat of another story, I guess I can't blame them since that's how the YouTube game is played. A lot of content in social media seems to focus on rage-bait or emotional content in the last few years or so.

[ABCbits]

Did anyone bother to read the introduction to that vid?

We went to a small Texas town where one Bitcoin mining facility uses as much power as the entire city of Austin.

Note 'WE' - as in they do not live there but rather go around looking for clickbait they can rant about.

I did. I skimmed the video and it's not only clickbait, where they also frame the issue as if Bitcoin miner primarily responsible for all issues mentioned.

Looks like the company behind this is quite popular. The recent news about them seems to focus more on how they increase the number of Bitcoins in their wallet, though, with little to no mention of their mining activity. If it's old news and the video is just a repeat of another story, I guess I can't blame them since that's how the YouTube game is played. A lot of content in social media seems to focus on rage-bait or emotional content in the last few years or so.

Their mining pool have about 4-5% hashrate and they involve themselves in politics, so that's probably how you and other member hear about it.

[alani123]

Why

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

If I came next to your house, with loudspeakers, playing music loudly enough to be under the legal limit, would you still support the idea of loudspeakers?

Yeah dude, if your loudspeaker operation was supported by a huge industry and lobbying efforts and you were so hellbent to make my house worthless and my life hell over your profit, then yeah, I'd be very against it.

You can't strip context over a silly example. Let's not be so blind sighted. I like bitcoin too but if the industry ruins the life of some people we should accept the reality.

[Medusah]

You can't strip context over a silly example. Let's not be so blind sighted. I like bitcoin too but if the industry ruins the life of some people we should accept the reality.

Here's reality: you either support bitcoin, and accept the idea that there will be noise anywhere close to mining rigs, or you reject bitcoin for this idiotic reason, and consequently show support for the alternative, debt-slavery, war-machine, poverty-generating fiat standard.

[alani123]

You can't strip context over a silly example. Let's not be so blind sighted. I like bitcoin too but if the industry ruins the life of some people we should accept the reality.

Here's reality: you either support bitcoin, and accept the idea that there will be noise anywhere close to mining rigs, or you reject bitcoin for this idiotic reason, and consequently show support for the alternative, debt-slavery, war-machine, poverty-generating fiat standard.

Bitcoin mining ruining lives isn't a one way road.

If regulators want to permit it they should also support the efforts to regulate it.
Think of how nuclear energy production is regulated. If there was no oversight over the waste people would've dying left and right all over the world. We have the technology to build production plants without ruining the lives of residents and the environment.

It will cost more but human life and our planet is more valuable...

[shield132]

Moreover, the mining operations get favourable electricity rates while residents end up paying the premium. All at a time that the water supply is also scarce, and we all know industrial scale bitcoin mining needs tons of water for cooling.

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

That's the case in my country. BitFury built huge mining centres in my country and our oligarch has shares of the company. They get electricity for a ridiculously cheap price and consume a lot of it. The government increases electricity prices for us, normal citizens, while BitFury consumes more and more energy every year. They also created a special tax-free zone for them, so they can import anything they wish without paying taxes, while we have to pay them if we want to import something that is worth over $120.

I miss old days when you could buy a GPU and generate some profit at home. I also love fair conditions, not unhealthy benefits that these companies get but sadly, money lights up hell.

[Davidvictorson]

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

If this were truly the case, I would not support it in any way. No animal not to talk of humans should be subjected to live and bear such conditions. Although, I support bitcoin mining because of the perks attached to it, if those who operate it don't ensure that their neighbors do not have to suffer from the noise and other environmental impact because they didn't use the materials, then people will turn against. Bitcoin mining can work perfectly well without hurting neighboring communities. If they can't then must find that alternative or otherwise, they should shut down

[Outhue]

Newly released video highlights the effects industrial bitcoin mining can have on society:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7_WDzPyoqU

Marathon Digital Holdings has been running industrial scale BTC mining operation in Texas with complete disregard as to what effect their operations can have on local communities.

They're essentially blasting industrial levels of noise into everyone's household. There's no way to shield yourself from 85 decibels of noise. This is the legal limit in texas, which mind you, is very relaxed in terms of regulation. OSHA dictates that when noise is constant above 85 decibels in a workplace, the employer must implement hearing protection measures for workers exposed to these levels of noise.

But in Texas, this bitcoin mine is allowed by politicians to blast noise levels over 100 decibels into resident's homes without any issue.

Moreover, the mining operations get favourable electricity rates while residents end up paying the premium. All at a time that the water supply is also scarce, and we all know industrial scale bitcoin mining needs tons of water for cooling.

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

This is not good, Texas has empty hundreds of miles that they can build their mining facility on, why did they choose to build this one close to where people are living? This is not good, people are already complaining that if kamala was president she won't allow this and that's alot of equipment running 24/7 over there, it's clearly not healthy.

Poor people, they are old and older people need the silence in their surroundings, they have to rest and sleep well unfortunately this won't be the case for these old people, this is not acceptable by me, it's not a good thing and I hope these old people families can help stand up for them. They can maybe pay them off to live somewhere else or what?

I can't run more than two a Asic miners, I like the power they offer but the noise is something that I can't stand, gone are those golden days where a GPU is enough to mine, even Bitcoin home miners have high noise too.

[uefbv]

Yeah, you definitely can't live next to this.  If I were the people living next to Marathon, and there was absolutely nothing that I could do at the City Hall level, I'd put the house for sale.

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

If I came next to your house, with loudspeakers, playing music loudly enough to be under the legal limit, would you still support the idea of loudspeakers?


People who think "crypto money" buys politicians are for a serious wake up call on what fiat money is capable of.  Bitcoin mining does consume a lot of electricity, does produce a lot of noise, but it provides the world an alternative to a system that is responsible for most of genocide and poverty.  There's nothing as morally imperative as ending central banks, and bitcoin is the only way to do that.  People who wouldn't support bitcoin mining because of this, are completely blind and hypocrites, as they consequently show support for the alternative debt-slavery system that is responsible for a lot more evil. 

There's a statistic: Coal-fired mining farms produce 300-400kg of CO₂ per Bitcoin, equivalent to the emissions of a car traveling 2,000 kilometers. However, this also depends on the specific circumstances.

[vapourminer]

[...] Texas has empty hundreds of miles that they can build their mining facility on, why did they choose to build this one close to where people are living?

because its next to a electricity generation plant, thats why. the plant was already there so they build the mine next to it.

as for the peeps. well sorry but look hearing aids are getting cheaper every day!

edit /s just in case

[yixichloro2xx]

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

If this were truly the case, I would not support it in any way. No animal not to talk of humans should be subjected to live and bear such conditions. Although, I support bitcoin mining because of the perks attached to it, if those who operate it don't ensure that their neighbors do not have to suffer from the noise and other environmental impact because they didn't use the materials, then people will turn against. Bitcoin mining can work perfectly well without hurting neighboring communities. If they can't then must find that alternative or otherwise, they should shut down

Hmmm, I see your point, although if mining really causes that kind of harm, then it is  not just a minor inconvenience, it is  a serious problem. No human or animal should have to live with constant noise or other environmental issues just because someone wants to run a mining rig. I am all for Bitcoin mining and the benefits it brings, but only when it is done responsibly.

The truth is, mining doesn’t have to disturb anyone. With proper soundproofing, renewable energy setups, and choosing the right locations, operators can run their businesses without making life miserable for their neighbors. If they can’t figure that out, then they’re just giving critics more ammo and honestly, in that case, maybe shutting down is the only option left.

[philipma1957]

If it came to your neighborhood, would you still support bitcoin mining?

If this were truly the case, I would not support it in any way. No animal not to talk of humans should be subjected to live and bear such conditions. Although, I support bitcoin mining because of the perks attached to it, if those who operate it don't ensure that their neighbors do not have to suffer from the noise and other environmental impact because they didn't use the materials, then people will turn against. Bitcoin mining can work perfectly well without hurting neighboring communities. If they can't then must find that alternative or otherwise, they should shut down

Hmmm, I see your point, although if mining really causes that kind of harm, then it is  not just a minor inconvenience, it is  a serious problem. No human or animal should have to live with constant noise or other environmental issues just because someone wants to run a mining rig. I am all for Bitcoin mining and the benefits it brings, but only when it is done responsibly.

The truth is, mining doesn’t have to disturb anyone. With proper soundproofing, renewable energy setups, and choosing the right locations, operators can run their businesses without making life miserable for their neighbors. If they can’t figure that out, then they’re just giving critics more ammo and honestly, in that case, maybe shutting down is the only option left.

guys this has not a single thing to do with btc mining.

this is Texas being pro business and anti people.

the particular thing they are doing it with is btc mining.


tired of bashing on this thread when the op should be saying Texas sucks for letting a big business fuck the town it is in.

once again corrupt governments hurting little people for money.