Data centers impact the health and energy costs of surrounding communities
Data centers significantly impact surrounding communities by affecting air quality, water quality, noise levels, land use, and electricity costs. These facilities, especially prevalent in Northern Virginia, consume vast amounts of power and water, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and straining local resources. The article highlights how these impacts can lead to health concerns and increased utility bills for residents.
Data centers, the backbone of the digital economy, are rapidly expanding across the United States, with Virginia hosting over 600 facilities, two-thirds of which are located in Northern Virginia. According to a report by Neha Gour, Ed Maibach, and Luis Ortiz from George Mason University, this growth is projected to drive U.S. data center electricity consumption to 12% of the national total by 2028.
The researchers identified five main areas where data centers impact nearby residents and the broader public: air quality, water quality, noise levels, land use, and energy costs. The immense electricity demand, often met by fossil fuel burning, leads to air pollution linked to various health issues and contributes to climate change. On-site diesel generators during outages exacerbate local air pollution. Globally, data centers are projected to consume 4.2 billion to 6.6 billion cubic meters of water annually by 2027, with Northern Virginia, particularly Loudoun County, experiencing a doubling of potable water use by data centers between 2019 and 2023.
Continuous operations also generate persistent low-frequency humming noises that, while not violating local ordinances, can disrupt sleep and concentration for residents. Data center expansion often targets undeveloped land, such as Prince William County's Rural Crescent, transforming green spaces into industrial zones and increasing truck traffic and diesel exhaust during construction. A 2024 Virginia legislative report indicated that residential electricity bills could rise by $14 to $37 per month by 2040 due to data center-related grid strain, disproportionately affecting economically distressed families.
The authors emphasize that many of these harms can be mitigated through better planning and design, such as increasing renewable energy adoption, using recycled water for cooling, reengineering fan mounts to reduce noise, and requiring data centers to cover more of the grid costs they generate. They conclude that expanding digital infrastructure without protecting community health is an unacceptable option.