AI data centers face growing backlash in US - China Daily

Opposition to data centers in the United States has intensified recently, evolving from localized community resistance into broader policy debates over critical resources like land use, electricity costs, and water access. This growing backlash is evident from city halls to state legislatures as communities grapple with the environmental footprint and resource demands of the burgeoning AI industry.

Key actions highlight this trend: residents in Monterey Park, California, overwhelmingly voted to permanently prohibit large-scale data centers citywide, making it the first U.S. city to enact such a ban. Concurrently, New York state legislators passed a one-year moratorium on new hyperscale data centers to study their impact on infrastructure and the environment. Similarly, Port Washington, Wisconsin, voted to restrict future data centers, and other communities in Connecticut, Missouri, and Maine have also implemented moratoriums or bans. According to the Rockefeller Institute of Government, 14 states are currently considering or have considered moratoriums on data centers.

Common concerns driving this opposition include noise, potential impacts on home values, strain on local utilities, significant water consumption, and the loss of land that could be used for housing or agriculture. The financial burden on households due to increased utility bills from data center energy demands has also become a prominent issue. In Arizona, the state's largest utility, Arizona Public Service, has proposed a 45 percent rate increase for "extra-large energy users," primarily data centers, alongside a 14.5 percent hike for residential customers. Arizona lawmakers are also moving to suspend sales tax exemptions for data center developers.

A March Gallup survey found that 70 percent of Americans oppose building an AI data center in their area, with half concerned about resource impact and 22 percent about quality of life. This strong public sentiment is predicted to fuel grassroots activism and legal challenges, potentially making AI infrastructure a significant campaign issue. Experts from the University of Michigan and Brookings suggest that local opposition is rapidly becoming the primary constraint on data center expansion, with Data Center Watch reporting that over 75 projects, valued at approximately $130 billion, were blocked or delayed in the first three months of this year alone.