James Decker is crypto curious. The mayor of Stamford, a West Texas city of 3,100 people, has watched data mining operations sprout up in neighboring towns. He wonders if the industry can breathe new life into his community.

But Decker has concerns. West Texas is well acquainted with riding the booms and busts of the oil field. And Decker worries that cryptocurrency could follow a similar pattern, leaving his town high and dry.

“Economic development in rural communities is sometimes throwing a hungry dog a bone and he’ll take whatever he can get. That’s how a rural community gets saddled with a bunch of crap,” Decker said.

Many communities in the United States find themselves at a similar crossroads, weighing the uncertain economic benefits of digital currencies against the potential environmental costs.

Crypto mining is the computerized process that yields cryptocurrencies, which are an ever-expanding set of digital commodities that are growing in use and popularity worldwide. As the industry has grown, so has the amount of power it consumes.

In 2021, crypto miners consumed 102 terawatt-hours of electricity, according to an estimate compiled by Cambridge University. That is roughly equivalent to the annual electricity demand of Pakistan, a country of 228 million people.

Crypto’s growth has prompted a fierce debate in energy and environmental circles. Advocates of digital currencies say crypto mining offers some benefits for the planet, and believe the practice should be regulated like data centers operated by tech firms like Netflix and Google.

They argue that the industry can help spur the development of wind and solar power, noting that many companies are explicitly moving to West Texas because of cheap renewable…