Foreign media: The United States is becoming the global Bitcoin "mining" center, and environmental risks are causing concerns

Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao website recently reported that the United States is rapidly emerging as a new global Bitcoin mining center.

New media quoted the Wall Street Journal as saying that many mining companies are betting on the United States' reliable energy supply and a more predictable regulatory environment. Data released by the University of Cambridge in the UK show that more than one-third of the world's Bitcoin mining computing power currently comes from machines in the United States, while this proportion was less than one-fifth last spring.

Bitcoin mining has become a lucrative business, with one bitcoin currently priced at about $60,000. To obtain new bitcoins, powerful computers compete to solve a series of mathematical puzzles in the hope of unlocking new bitcoins. Many of these computers are online 24 hours a day.

Data released by the University of Cambridge in the UK shows that currently more than one-third of the world's Bitcoin mining computing power comes from machines in the United States.

By design, the Bitcoin network releases new cryptocurrency only every 10 minutes, with fewer bitcoins to be released in the future. This makes the race to unlock bitcoins an energy-intensive task, since the only way to increase your odds of winning is to bring more machines online.

Currently, Nasdaq-listed mining company Bit Digital has added more than 20,000 mining machines to its fleet in New York, Nebraska, Georgia, Texas and Alberta, Canada. Due to continued shipping delays, some mining machines are currently stranded at US ports.

However, mining is not without risks in the United States. The United States has its own regulatory restrictions on the cryptocurrency industry. Cryptocurrency companies have become the target of regulators, and Gensler, chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, has taken a strict regulatory approach to the cryptocurrency market. Gensler questioned whether many virtual currency issuers and exchanges have ignored investor protection rules.

In addition, Bitcoin mining has also raised local concerns about climate pollution as some old fossil fuel plants come back online. The New York State Legislature is considering a bill that would ban the use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and call on mining companies to record their carbon footprints. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is also considering taking steps to require public companies to disclose climate data.

But cryptocurrency companies say the U.S. legal system is set up to ensure that laws take longer to be implemented than in other countries, giving bitcoin mining companies the ability to adapt and weigh potential policy changes.

Additionally, the cryptocurrency company believes that the recent approval of several U.S. exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that hold Bitcoin futures in the U.S. also shows that the U.S. is unlikely to suppress or significantly curtail Bitcoin mining. Compass Mining CEO Whit Gibbs called this "a positive signal of confidence from regulators... hopefully it's a signal that they will support Bitcoin mining."

Texas is a popular destination for bitcoin mining companies that have nowhere else to go because the state has low electricity prices and generally reliable power supply (despite a multi-day blackout last winter), which is crucial for bitcoin mining.

The state government’s friendly stance has also attracted mining companies. The state’s banking regulator has said it will allow lenders to hold digital assets on behalf of customers.

Meanwhile, Miami is trying to get cryptocurrency mining companies to relocate to Florida, citing the state's low energy prices and a nearby nuclear power plant as a reliable source of renewable energy. However, mining companies need to be housed in data centers, and high real estate prices in the state make other markets more attractive.