Calvert board votes to tighten data center text

The Calvert County Board of Commissioners recently convened, where the topic of a data center moratorium was again rejected. Commissioners Mike Hart and Grasso, who advocated for a temporary halt to data center projects, failed to secure enough support for a six-month moratorium. Following the rejection of the moratorium, Commissioner Earl F. “Buddy” Hance moved to direct county government staff to implement new requirements for upcoming text amendments on data centers. This new ordinance will mandate that applicants address a list of environmental concerns and conduct necessary studies, ensuring no fast-tracking of proposed data center projects. Commissioner Grasso specifically requested the stipulation against special treatment for developers. Hart, while voting in favor of the motion, emphasized the county's need to reject projects posing health risks. The discussions were prompted by Amazon Web Services' submission of a data center application near the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant. Jason Brinkley, the planning and zoning director, confirmed the receipt of hundreds of pages of documents from AWS but noted the application is at "start one," pending payment and a full staff review. Citizen opposition was vocal during the public comment segment, with residents like Allyson Sigler of Port Republic and Andrea Smith expressing concerns about environmental impact and security risks, vowing to intensify their resistance if projects proceed.