The owners of a bitcoin farm located south of Platte City are seeking a court review of a decision made against their operation at a recent Platte County Board of Zoning Adjustment meeting.
Evolution Technology, based in Odessa, is leasing four acres off Humphrey’s Road south of Platte City. The property is owned by Northwest Electric Power Cooperative and is zoned for agricultural use.
The bitcoin farm is made up of several shipping containers filled with computer equipment. These computers “mine” for bitcoin, a form of crypto currency. Nearby residents have complained about the loud hum from fans keeping these computers cool, claiming they can be heard across a far distance.
On Aug. 7, the BZA upheld the Platte County Planning and Zoning Commission’s May order to stop work at the facility. Shortly after, Evolution Technology filed a request for a writ of certiorari on Aug. 16, seeking a review of the BZA’s decision by the Platte County Circuit Court. It was granted on Aug. 29, triggering a court review.
According to Evolution Technology, the bitcoin mining operation is located on the co-op property due to the steady supply of electricity through the transformer substation on the property. They say the co-op allows the mining operation because it “helps the co-op manage potentially damaging fluctuations in the power grid.”
The May 7 stop order sent by planning and zoning states that the property is a “data center” which is not permitted in the agricultural zoning area. Additionally, the usage “created a condition conducive to the breeding of rodents or insects or any other dangerous, noxious, injurious or objectionable condition, substance or element which would create any hazard to the public health, peace or comfort.” The operation also failed to obtain a building permit before installing the shipping containers.
Evolution objects to the term “data center,” and says the usage is permitted because the bitcoin farm is operating in connection with the main use of the electrical substation, and states, “bitcoin mining operations are routinely and customarily deployed by electrical utilities to manage electricity demand.”
The bitcoin farm’s owners also state that there is no food storage, trash, waste or other materials conducive to the breeding of rodents or insects and that the sound of the fans is not prohibited under the zoning code.
Additionally, Evolution states that as the shipping containers were constructed off-site and are not affixed to the ground that they do not require a building permit.
The Board of Zoning Adjustment denied these appeals on a 4-0 vote and upheld the original May order to stop work.