Crypto mining businesses are under criticism as the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) begins a preliminary assessment of their energy use statistics.
"Identified" commercial miners will be asked to provide information on their energy consumption in the survey beginning next week
According to a news statement from the EIA on Thursday, the survey was authorized by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as an emergency data collection request on January 26.
According to EIA Administrator Joe DeCarolis, "We intend to continue to analyze and write about the energy implications of cryptocurrency mining activities in the United States" (declaration). "
Our main objective is to analyze the changing energy demand for cryptocurrency mining, pinpoint regions experiencing significant growth, and determine the exact sources of electricity that are being used to meet this demand."
Many in the mining community were worried and angry at the decision, and some even went so far as to say that miners should ignore the survey altogether. The director of mining business Catherdra Bitcoin and bitcoin advocate Marty Bent said on his blog that the EIA appears to be beginning to "create a hyper-detailed registry of mining operations" in the United States.
I thought, "Interesting," as soon as I read the filing and press release. In his post, Bent expressed hope that the industry may emerge stronger from this situation.
The poll demands extremely detailed information, including details on mining fleets and hash rate statistics, which prompted him to describe it as "one of the more Orwellian things I've seen come out of this Administration," after he dug more.