“Data centers.”
Does that phrase conjure up images of giant, looming specters? Something to avoid thinking about?
No matter what you think of them, they’re coming, whether we like them or not. And most of us do (or will) enjoy the benefits that AI computing brings, including jobs for construction and maintaining facilities – unless, of course, it takes your job. But what are the real costs, and why are people protesting against building them in their own communities?
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First, there are cost structures which can raise energy bills for local customers. Here are 2 ways:
- For starters, data centers’ massive energy consumption requires increased power infrastructure – paid for with taxpayer dollars, thus increasing customers’ energy bills. Residents of Virginia (which houses more data centers than any other state) experienced rate hikes more than 260% in just 5 years.
- Another cost elevation occurs when municipalities give tax breaks to entice data-center manufacturers to their areas, then pass that cost onto residents.
These are just two of the reasons we have seen a mass outcry across the nation from concerned citizens showing up at public meetings.
It is also why state legislatures, including Kentucky’s, are exploring legislation to prevent data-center costs from raising customers’ energy bills. One solution has been to create a separate energy usage “rate class” for data centers, which don’t fit neatly under residential or commercial classes, because of their immense energy draw. Another is to require data centers to build their own power infrastructure. We can all contact our state reps to get behind such solutions.
Note: A data center is being considered for Maysville, KY beside a residential subdivision. This “hyperscale” data center will consume electricity equivalent to 1.5 million homes. To learn more, visit: wearemasoncountyky.org.
Second is immense water usage, with Freon (an environmental toxin) often used for cooling servers and facilities. As climate change impacts the water table, there is concern that areas already struggling with water shortages won’t have enough to meet data-center AND residents’ water needs.
Fortunately, newer technologies are coming; but they’re not fully deployable, widespread, nor able to run on clean energy alone (nor will they automatically help communities with existing data centers). And, creative solutions are coming from Finland, which is building data centers under ground, minimizing water usage by providing natural, stable cooling temperatures; they then go a step further, using the generated heat for homes and buildings.
Third is sound, light, and air pollution seriously impacting local residents, who complain that they can’t go outside nor sleep. Residents within a 3-mile radius describe the constant humming noise like a lawnmower or leaf blower — operating 24/7 — plus vibration they can feel inside their homes. This causes sleep disruption, headaches, and mental-health issues.
And what about school students? Research shows “low-frequency noise can negatively impact higher-order cognitive functions, such as logical reasoning, mathematical calculation, and data processing.”
Light pollution is most pronounced nearby, like a spotlight shining into your home all night, describes one homeowner. The “light dome” seen at the horizon is visible from a distance of 30+ miles away.
Plus, what impacts humans also affects wildlife, with residents reporting a noticeable absence of birds. Rural residents highlight the negative impact on livestock and horses.
Although air pollution is most concentrated nearby, it can travel hundreds of miles. Emissions are compounded by on-site diesel or natural-gas turbines which generate power; like fossil-fuel power plants, they emit toxic chemicals, heavy metals, VOCs, and particulates (tiny particles so small they can enter not only deep lung tissue but also the bloodstream, traveling to other organs).
Immediate effects are sinus and throat issues plus headaches. Long-term health impacts are well-established, including cancer; organ and reproductive damage; and chronic respiratory, cardiac, etc. disease (not to mention the broader consequences of mining for rare-earth minerals used in the electronics).
Most impacted are fetuses, babies and children, seniors, and people with chronic health conditions. A Harvard-affiliated study predicts that one data center’s power generators could raise local health costs $99 million annually.
Most local jurisdictions don’t have zoning regulations which consider this magnitude of sound, light, or air pollution; so data-center operators can build and then say they are within legal limits. Residents report feeling they have traded their quality of life and property values for big-tech—and now they can’t sell their homes in order to move away.
Fourth is the environmental impact from an increase in fossil-fuel power plants. One data center can consume as much energy as a major city like Louisville, KY. And even though clean, renewable energy is outpacing fossil-fuel energy in cost savings, with a recent study showing wind and solar averaging 47% cheaper rates, the Trump Administration is clawing back Congress-approved funding for clean-energy infrastructure projects and propping up fossil-fuel industries.
The consequences? We will all experience adverse health effects from the accompanying air, water, and ground pollution – and you don’t need to have asthma or emphysema to feel them. This raises healthcare costs and shortens lives.
Moreover, fossil-fuel industries are the most significant contributor, at 74%, to greenhouse gases affecting climate change; surprisingly, natural gas has a 33% bigger greenhouse-gas footprint than coal. The big picture? Increased floods, droughts, fires, water shortages, heatwaves, and severe storms – costing our communities billions of dollars and also impacting human health and life.
And, consider this – a 2024 study shows that for every $1 spent on climate-change resilience, we save $13 on disaster remediation—plus the incalculable saving of human lives.
It’s not ALL gloom and doom. There are many amazing benefits and opportunities coming from cloud storage and AI computing. Plus, each data center does increase the local tax base, and their owners are now offering community-benefit agreements. We just need to be more thoughtful in our approach to data-center buildouts.
So, we can all benefit from asking our legislators to answer these three questions:
- What are you doing to deal with the energy costs of data centers?
- What are you doing to deal with the environmental impacts of data centers?
- What are you doing to claw back those Congress-approved clean-energy infrastructure funds, so we can have the energy for data centers without sacrificing Kentuckians’ health?
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