{"id":128770,"date":"2025-05-07T13:27:14","date_gmt":"2025-05-07T13:27:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/?p=128770"},"modified":"2025-05-07T13:27:14","modified_gmt":"2025-05-07T13:27:14","slug":"crypto-miner-deserts-pennsylvania-site-fails-to-plug-wells-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/?p=128770","title":{"rendered":"Crypto miner deserts Pennsylvania site, fails to plug wells: Report"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Source: Cointelegraph.com NewsCryptocurrency miner Diversified Energy quietly vacated a natural gas-powered crypto mining site in Elk County, Pennsylvania, reportedly leaving behind unplugged wells and regulatory violations.<br \/>\nThe site, known as Longhorn Pad A, was revived in 2022 after sitting dormant for nearly a decade when Diversified began using it to fuel on-site generators powering cryptocurrency mining computers, according to a report by the Erie Times-News.<br \/>\nPer the report, the operation was launched without obtaining an air quality permit from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).<br \/>\nThough the company was later granted the permit in December 2023, a March 2025 inspection revealed that Diversified had already removed the mining infrastructure.<br \/>\nEmpty metallic sheds and missing production equipment led the DEP to issue a formal violation notice for well abandonment. Diversified reportedly denied that the site was abandoned, saying that it may resume gas production.<br \/>\nHowever, the DEP and environmental advocates say the company has failed to meet its obligations. Under a 2021 agreement, Diversified had committed to plugging Longhorn A and 13 other wells at the end of their operational life, an obligation it has reportedly not fulfilled.<br \/>\nAn image of the site. Source: The Erie Times-NewsCointelegraph has reached out to Diversified for comment.<br \/>\nRelated: Bitcoin miners should pay costs in depreciating currency \u2014 Ledn exec<br \/>\nDiversified under scrutiny over business model<br \/>\nEnvironmentalists have long raised concerns about Diversified\u2019s business model, which involves acquiring aging, low-producing wells and extracting remaining value without sufficient plans for decommissioning.<br \/>\nPlugging a single well can cost over $100,000, and Pennsylvania already has over 350,000 orphaned and abandoned wells, making the stakes particularly high.<br \/>\nA 2022 report labeled the company\u2019s approach a \u201cbusiness model built to fail Appalachia,\u201d warning that taxpayers could be left footing the bill for thousands of unplugged wells.<br \/>\nDiversified recently agreed to plug 3,000 wells by 2034 in a separate legal settlement but continues to face regulatory scrutiny, including a probe by the US House Committee on Energy and Commerce.<br \/>\nHorton Township officials, where the Longhorn site is located, say they\u2019ve received no updates from the company.<br \/>\nLocal supervisor PJ Piccirillo told the Erie Times-News that generators and tanks were removed without notice. \u201cAll we know is that the property seems to have been abandoned,\u201d he said.<br \/>\nRelated: Bitcoin mining \u2014 Institutions boost investments amid favorable US climate<br \/>\nUS cities confront crypto mining<br \/>\nOn April 25, the planning commission of Vilonia, Arkansas, unanimously rejected a proposal to establish a cryptocurrency mining facility within the city limits, following opposition from residents.<br \/>\nIn January, Arkansas lawmakers\u00a0introduced a bill that would ban crypto mining operations within 30 miles of any US military facility in the state.<br \/>\nThe opposition to crypto miners in Arkansas follows a broader trend across US municipalities where crypto-mining initiatives have faced increasing scrutiny.<br \/>\nIn October 2024, a group of residents in Granbury, Texas,\u00a0filed a lawsuit against Marathon Digital, alleging that its mining facility generated too much noise.<br \/>\nMagazine: 12 minutes of nail-biting tension when Ethereum\u2019s Pectra fork goes live<a href=\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/news\/diversified-energy-crypto-mine-abandonment-pennsylvania?utm_source=rss_feed&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss_partner_inbound\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"feedzy-rss-link-icon\" rel=\"noopener\">Read More<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Source: Cointelegraph.com NewsCryptocurrency miner Diversified Energy quietly vacated a natural gas-powered crypto mining site in Elk County, Pennsylvania, reportedly leaving behind unplugged wells and regulatory violations. The site, known as&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128770"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=128770"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128770\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=128770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=128770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=128770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}