South Huntingdon OKs data center regulations amid opposition to facilities

South Huntingdon, Pennsylvania – South Huntingdon Township officials unanimously approved new regulations for data center development on Thursday, September 17, 2026. The decision was met with resident opposition, with some attendees at the supervisors meeting shouting for the board to table the vote, claiming they were uninformed about the ordinance's contents.

Supervisor Matt Jennewine, chairman of the three-member board, stated the intent of the ordinance is to hold future data center companies liable for potential adverse impacts on water, air, noise, roads, and the community. The 12-section ordinance, which took seven months to draft with assistance from special legal counsel Leslie Peters, addresses construction, installation, operation, impact, and decommissioning of data center facilities. Key requirements include a 500-foot setback from property lines, a secondary facility for ammonia storage, tree buffers or opaque visual blocks, limits on light and noise, and a mandatory environmental impact assessment.

Peters explained that the ordinance is modeled after similar regulations but tailored for South Huntingdon, which lacks a comprehensive zoning ordinance to specifically designate data center locations. She also noted that the township cannot outright ban data centers or set excessively restrictive rules that would prevent development. Residents like Mark DeMaglio and Dempster Trice raised concerns about the potential impact of data centers on property values and agricultural operations, with Trice specifically worried about pollution affecting his cattle. The township is also home to the 940-megawatt Tenaska Westmoreland Generating Station, a natural gas-fueled power plant.