Newport, a seaside metropolis in Wales, is legendary for its docks and industrial heritage — and for allegedly having half a billion {dollars} value of Bitcoin buried in its native landfill.
Former IT employee James Howell mined the cryptocurrency again in 2013, effectively earlier than its worth skyrocketed. In a mix-up, he unintentionally threw away the onerous drive its entry key was saved on.
“I discovered a clean 20GB onerous drive in my drawer as a substitute of 1000’s of Bitcoin,” Howell informed CBS Information.
Since then, he is been lobbying the native authorities to permit him to excavate tons of trash within the landfill as a part of an try to seek out it. However native officers are refusing to let him.
“There are firms on the market that dig on the backside of the ocean for treasure. Digging a landfill is a rattling sight bit simpler than digging on the backside of the ocean,” stated Howell.
He stated he is contacted specialists from all over the world as a part of his try to recuperate his enormous Bitcoin fortune. Regardless of providing Newport Metropolis Council a minimize of the cash if he have been to seek out them, it continues to refuse the proposal citing environmental harm it may trigger and that the council’s “responsibility is to offer companies to our residents” — one thing it stated Howell’s plan would get in the way in which of.
Nonetheless, Howell is set to maintain looking for the onerous drive.
“I am not gonna to surrender on it, as a result of it is you realize, like I stated, it is a misplaced lottery ticket,” he stated. ” A lottery ticket would disintegrate however a tough drive does not. It isn’t going anyplace.”
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