Reno City Council adopts pending moratorium on new data centers

Reno leaders are moving to temporarily pause new data center projects as the city considers tighter rules and regulations on these facilities. The Reno City Council voted 6-1 Thursday during a special meeting to adopt a “pending moratorium” that would temporarily pause the approval and construction of new data centers within city limits. Senior Planner Lauren Knox said the pending moratorium would immediately affect new applications. “We cannot accept a conditional use permission application within the next 30 days or until council adopts a final moratorium solution,” Knox said. The pending moratorium follows an April 22 vote, when council members unanimously agreed to begin tightening regulations on data centers and start the process to further regulate them. Knox said the city is looking at “a bit more specificity for data centers in terms of where they should be located,” along with “more specific sound requirements, more specific requirements for energy or water impacts,” and “community benefits agreements.” Advocates, including the Sierra Club Toiyabe Chapter, have pushed for a pause. Olivia Tanager, the chapter’s executive director, said “data centers really have an outsized impact on community members, from issues associated with air quality to questions around water, both quantity and quality, to how data centers impact our grid stability here in Reno.” Others have raised concerns about how a moratorium could affect business development. Tray Abney of the Nevada Data Center Alliance said “a moratorium sends the wrong message, not only just for housing and development, but for development out in the city of Reno.” Nevada Lt. Gov. Starvos Anthony said the state has been talking with data center companies about reducing resource use. “We’re talking to data centers and we’re letting them know that you have to develop technology for these data centers that use less water and that use the less energy and use other alternatives to energy and they’re responding,” Anthony said. The pending moratorium is the first step in a two-part process. The final moratorium is expected to be discussed June 1. ----- Stay up to date with our social media: KRNV on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/krnvnews4/ KRNV on Twitter: https://twitter.com/KRNV KRNV online: https://mynews4.com Have a news tip? Send it directly to us: Email us: news@mynews4.com Call the Newsroom: 775-785-1210 KRNV is a NV based station and an NBC affiliate owned and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. is one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies in the country today. #krnv #reno #news #localnews #video