Planned Texas data centers could emit more greenhouse gases than many countries
AI data centers in Texas, including OpenAI's Stargate in Abilene, are building large gas-powered plants to meet energy demands, generating significant greenhouse gas emissions. Regulators are criticized for allowing these projects to proceed with minimal public notice and environmental review through permitting loopholes. Local residents near these sites report severe quality-of-life impacts and property devaluation.
Texas is becoming a hotspot for AI data centers, with projects like OpenAI's Stargate in Abilene planning massive on-site gas power plants to meet their immense energy needs. The Stargate project, developed by Crusoe, has faced criticism from local residents, including Omaira Garcia, who claims her family was never informed about the construction of the large-scale power plant near their home until well after it began, leading to dust, noise, and concerns about health and property values.
Regulators are accused of allowing these data centers to circumvent extensive public scrutiny and environmental reviews by obtaining minor air permits, often for initial small-scale operations, before seeking significant expansions. This 'small first, big later' strategy is criticized by experts like former EPA air enforcement chief Bruce Buckheit and former TCEQ staffer Kathryn Guerra, who suggest it limits public input and may violate aggregation policies, calling some permits 'sham permits.'
At least 15 gas plants tied to data centers are planned for Texas, with nine potentially emitting over 130 million tons of greenhouse gases annually. Other companies like Meta, Chevron, CyrusOne, and Vantage are also developing their own large-scale power sources. Critics, including Global Energy Monitor's Jenny Martos, warn that this trend risks 'locking in fossil fuel for the foreseeable future' and overstraining regulatory capabilities. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) denies that industry growth has compromised its mission, despite claims of an enforcement backlog.