EPA plans weaker pollution limits for data center turbines
The EPA is considering a proposal that could classify trailer-mounted gas turbines powering data centers as mobile sources, potentially exempting them from key Clean Air Act permitting and pollution-control requirements. The Environmental Defense Fund opposes the change, while xAI and its subsidiary MZX Tech face a lawsuit alleging they operated unpermitted turbines in Southaven, Mississippi, to power the Colossus 2 data center.
The Environmental Protection Agency has sent its proposed Nonroad Combustion Turbines Rule to the White House for review. The measure would potentially treat portable gas-fired turbines used by data centers as mobile sources rather than stationary industrial equipment, allowing them to avoid Title V and New Source Review requirements, public notice and some pollution-control obligations.
The Environmental Defense Fund warned that clusters of temporary turbines can produce pollution comparable to large power plants and could expose nearby communities to nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, particulate matter and formaldehyde without adequate oversight. Separately, the NAACP sued Elon Musk’s xAI and subsidiary MZX Tech in April, alleging that dozens of unpermitted methane turbines were operated in Southaven, Mississippi, to supply power to the Colossus 2 data center in South Memphis.