Mountain City Approves Trip to Tour CleanSpark Bitcoin Mine Amid Local Opposition
Town leaders in Mountain City, Tennessee, have approved a plan to send residents on a fact-finding trip to Georgia in response to mounting public opposition to CleanSpark’s proposed Bitcoin mine in the community.
At a meeting on Tuesday, the Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted to allocate $750 to rent two vans to transport locals to CleanSpark’s Norcross, Georgia, facility for a tour scheduled on June 16, according to local news outlet WJHL. The Georgia site uses the same immersion cooling technology that CleanSpark plans to deploy at its Johnson County project.
The Nevada-based miner has been working to establish a 50-acre data center off Highway 421, near the Johnson County Community Hospital. However, the plan has faced pushback from Mountain City residents, who cite concerns about noise pollution and potential disruption to the town’s rural environment. Critics point to the loud industrial fans commonly associated with traditional Bitcoin mining facilities.
In an effort to address those fears, CleanSpark has said it will use immersion cooling to reduce noise and improve energy efficiency compared to air-cooled operations.
Mayor Jerry Jordan, who has previously toured the Norcross site, encouraged residents to make the trip, saying it could help dispel misconceptions. He also reiterated that the new facility’s energy usage could offset the economic impact of the recently shuttered Parkdale Mills, a major local employer. The town has since raised utility rates to cover revenue shortfalls.
Originally, the board considered spending $5,000 on a chartered bus for the Georgia trip, but ultimately amended the motion to a $750 van rental after discussion. The vote passed with four aldermen in favor and one abstention.
CleanSpark first announced plans to expand into Tennessee earlier this year, acquiring two sites in the state through its $19.8 million purchase of GRIID Infrastructure’s assets in April. One of the two locations includes the proposed Mountain City site, which CleanSpark said would be retrofitted into a 50-megawatt mining facility using immersion cooling technology.
