Overview
- A recent Gallup-backed survey reported more than two-thirds of adults oppose building large data centers with 55 percent of women saying they strongly oppose construction compared with 43 percent of men.
- States and counties are responding with new rules and bills that pause or limit data-center permits, including local moratoriums in places such as Colleton County, South Carolina, and proposed state measures in Georgia, Maryland and Oklahoma.
- Local actions are already producing concrete results like the Ypsilanti utility pausing water deliveries to new projects, a Washington Township applicant withdrawing its proposal, and Microsoft canceling a planned Caledonia, Wisconsin, site after heavy opposition.
- Grassroots campaigns led largely by women and people from Black, Brown and Indigenous communities are shaping the fight and influencing politics, including local campaigns and endorsements tied to data-center opposition.
- Companies and some officials dispute specific impact claims while regulators and lawmakers press for greater transparency about water and power use and consider changes to permitting, utility rules and cost allocation for large data centers.