Oneida County implements one-year moratorium on data centers
Oneida County Board supervisors unanimously voted to enact a one-year moratorium on data center development. This period will allow the Planning and Development Committee to update zoning rules, study growth impacts, and amend county code sections. Residents and officials raised concerns about data centers' impact on electricity, water consumption, noise, and air pollution.
The Oneida County Board supervisors convened on Tuesday morning to deliberate and subsequently implement a one-year moratorium on data centers within the county. The unanimous 20-0 vote by the board places a temporary halt on new data center projects, effective for 12 months from the adoption date, unless superseded or extended by the Board of Supervisors.
The stated purpose of this moratorium is to provide the Oneida County Planning and Development Committee with sufficient time to amend relevant sections of the Oneida County Code, conduct thorough studies on growth impacts, update comprehensive plans, and draft new zoning regulations. Karl Jennrich, head of the Oneida County Planning and Zoning department, noted discussions among Wisconsin County Code Administrators about regulating data centers due to their significant community impact.
Local property owner Eric Rampala voiced concerns, highlighting the challenge data centers pose to the Northwoods way of life, particularly regarding noise and resource consumption. Data centers are known to increase local electricity and water usage, generate industrial noise, and contribute to air pollution from backup diesel generators. The county aims to establish protections to ensure any future data center development is done safely and appropriately.