Lackawanna County residents demand health and environmental impact study for proposed data centers
Lackawanna County residents are demanding commissioners fund a $165,000 study to assess the cumulative health and environmental impacts of numerous proposed data centers and power plants. Despite public enthusiasm, a majority of county commissioners have stalled the approval of the study, seeking a more patient approach. Residents, particularly from Archbald, are vehemently opposing further delays.
An overflow crowd of Lackawanna County residents packed the Commissioners' meeting room in Scranton, demanding that county tax dollars be allocated for a $165,000 study. The study, proposed by Commissioner Bill Gaughan, aims to quantify the cumulative air quality and public health impacts of numerous proposed data centers and power plants within the county.
Despite passionate pleas from residents, including Archbald Neighborhood Association co-founder Kayleigh Cornell, a majority of commissioners, Thom Welby and Chris Chermak, stalled the approval. Commissioner Chermak expressed a desire to ensure the study is done "right," while Commissioner Welby indicated support for a study but suggested local municipalities and the state should contribute to the cost. He also noted that commissioners would identify an appropriate firm to conduct it.
Residents, particularly those in Archbald, have been actively fighting data center developments for over a year. The Scranton Times-Tribune, in its opinion piece, strongly advocates for the cumulative impact study, arguing that site-specific environmental assessments submitted by developers often fail to account for the aggregated risks of concentrated industrial growth. While Archbald is a focal point, data centers have been proposed in multiple communities across the county, including Clifton, Covington, Dickson City, Jessup, Olyphant, Newton, and Ransom townships.