Opponents Deliver 19,000 Signatures Against Proposed Cayuga Data Campus
Opposition is mounting against TeraWulf's proposed AI data center at the former Cayuga Power Plant site in Lansing, New York. Opponents delivered over 19,000 petition signatures to the Lansing Town Board, citing concerns about water quality, air quality, electricity demand, and wildlife. Meanwhile, a proposed statewide moratorium on new data centers in New York awaits Governor Kathy Hochul's decision.
Opponents have renewed their efforts against TeraWulf's plan to convert the former Cayuga Power Plant site into a large-scale AI data center campus along Cayuga Lake in Lansing, N.Y. Ahead of a proposed statewide moratorium on new data centers awaiting Governor Kathy Hochul's decision, local groups gathered outside Lansing Town Hall.
More than 19,000 petition signatures were delivered to the Lansing Town Board, urging a closer look at the project and a slowdown in the approval process. Ken Wolkin, president of FLX Strong, called on the board to reject TeraWulf's application, citing risks to water quality, air quality, wildlife, wetlands, electricity demand, and community well-being.
Concerns were also raised by Gay Nicholson of Sustainable Finger Lakes regarding existing grid reliability issues and the potential strain on electricity supply from large data center loads. John Dennis, co-founder of CLEAN, emphasized the necessity of a full environmental impact statement before the project proceeds. The groups are actively lobbying Governor Hochul to sign the one-year statewide moratorium on new data centers.
Following public comment, the Lansing Town Board issued a statement indicating they currently have no official application from TeraWulf before them and therefore could not comment on the petition at this time.