James Howells, a British citizen, is suing the local council in an attempt to get back a hard drive that he claims contains 8,000 bitcoins (BTC). The value of the drive is currently estimated at about $647 million. This was reported by Vice.

In 2013, Howells’ then-partner mistakenly threw away a hard drive with a pile of other garbage. At that time, bitcoin was already worth just under £1 million, and its value has only increased since then.

For more than a decade, Howells has been trying to convince local authorities to allow him to excavate the landfill. He says his requests have been largely ignored. He has even assembled a team that can dig through 100 tons of garbage to find the hard drive.

If found, Howells believes the coins can be recovered. If successful, he offered the council 10% of the find, or $65 million. However, the city authorities refused him, explaining that excavation of the garbage that had been accumulating for ten years could cause negative environmental consequences.

According to preliminary estimates, the excavation will cost $13 million and take 18 to 36 months, plus another year for restoration. Howells says he is ready to cover all the costs.

So after numerous rejections, he decided to sue the council and demanded compensation in the amount of $647 million, which is the full value of the coins he lost.

Howells says he doesn’t hold out much hope for compensation in court. His goal is to “put pressure” on the council to allow him to excavate.