North Carolina County Enacts One-Year Ban On Commercial Bitcoin Mining, But Not Without Pushback

After a public hearing, Buncombe County voted to approve a moratorium on bitcoin mining in order to draft zoning standards and regulations for private land use.

As first covered in Bitcoin Magazine on April 6, Buncombe County, North Carolina, has proposed a one-year moratorium on bitcoin mining and held a public hearing on May 2.

The text of the proposal is that endowmentIf approved, it would go into effect on the same day as the hearing, so it was clear that the county commission was simply following procedure when receiving feedback from the public.

Unlike other stops in the state where No objections were expressedBitcoiners across the region have spoken out in opposition. There were four speakers who spoke to various concerns about the one-year ban on commercial bitcoin miners.

Comments in support of Bitcoin ranged from protecting financial freedom, strengthening the network through demand-response programs, sustainable energy investment and use, protecting First Amendment rights, encouraging innovation and more.

There were three people in the audience who expressed approval of the ban, citing concerns about noise and a desire to conserve energy use in order to meet Governor Roy Cooper’s climate goals.

The endowment passed unanimously.

From the Buncombe County website:

Buncombe County Board of Commissioners is moving forward to halt cryptocurrency mining. The commissioners approved the one-year ban after holding a public hearing during their meeting on May 2. Current county ordinances do not designate cryptocurrency mining as a specific use. Coin mining operations can affect “Cryptocurrency negatively affects neighboring neighborhoods due to excessive energy use, electronic waste, pollution, and noise. The pause will help protect the public interest until regulations on cryptocurrency mining are adopted. The one-year ban is effective immediately through May 1, 2024.”