Data center forum raises concerns over water, power, local control
A community forum in Spring Mills, West Virginia, discussed growing concerns over large-scale data centers proposed for Berkeley and Jefferson counties. Key issues included water and electricity consumption, loss of local control due to House Bill 2014, and lack of transparency from developers. Panelists advocated for greater local involvement, additional regulation, and a moratorium on new data center development.
The article details a community forum held in Spring Mills, West Virginia, where environmental scientists, data researchers, and legislative advocates convened to address the growing presence of large-scale data centers in the Eastern Panhandle, specifically Berkeley and Jefferson counties. A central point of contention was House Bill 2014, legislation passed in 2024, which establishes a certification process for "high-impact data centers" (those consuming at least 90 megawatts of power) and significantly restricts local government authority over these certified projects.
Than Hitt, a freshwater biologist with the West Virginia Rivers Coalition, highlighted concerns regarding water usage and the lack of transparency from developers, stating that residents and researchers are forced to estimate risks due to insufficient public data. Lucia Valentine, a West Virginia House of Delegates candidate, criticized HB 2014 for prohibiting local governments from enforcing rules on data center development and for exempting certain developer information from state Freedom of Information Act requests. Elizabeth Harris, another House of Delegates candidate, noted the law's implications for local land-use policies, particularly referencing the Bedington project in Berkeley County, located in an area designated for preservation.
Panelists also raised alarms about the substantial electricity demands of these facilities; Katie Heck estimated the Penzance facility alone could consume 3.5 terawatt hours annually, roughly eight to nine times the electricity used by all homes in Berkeley County combined. Concerns extended to transmission infrastructure and backup generators. Theodora Scarrato of Environmental Health Sciences characterized West Virginia's regulatory environment as uniquely lacking transparency and prioritizing "speed over safety." The forum concluded with calls for increased local involvement, more robust regulation, and a potential moratorium on new data center development, with Senate Bill 484 proposed as a model for preserving local control and requiring cost accountability from large-scale users.