New York Governor Hochul Enacts Data Center Moratorium, Affecting Genesee County Project
Governor Hochul has signed a bill enacting a year-long moratorium on large-scale data center construction in New York to establish environmental and energy grid protections. This moratorium directly impacts a proposed $19 billion Stream Data Centers project in the Town of Alabama, Genesee County, which faces local opposition due to water usage concerns. The project is currently proceeding through its environmental review process despite the new statewide pause.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul has signed a bill imposing a one-year moratorium on the construction of new large-scale data centers across the state. This move, which creates the nation's first data center moratorium, aims to allow state regulators to develop a comprehensive framework to protect the energy grid and the environment from the significant power and water demands of such facilities.
The moratorium has direct implications for a proposed $19 billion Stream Data Centers complex in the Town of Alabama, Genesee County. Local residents have expressed strong opposition to the 2.2 million square foot project, primarily citing concerns over its anticipated massive water consumption.
Despite the statewide pause, Mark Masse, President & CEO of the Genesee County Economic Development Center, stated that the Stream Data Centers project is continuing its progress through the State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) process. Masse highlighted that the project is already addressing many of the environmental and energy demand concerns that formed the basis for the moratorium, including a completed DEC environmental impact statement and plans to fully fund its necessary electrical infrastructure. The governor's office indicated that the moratorium will specifically pause state permitting for new large data centers while standards are developed to address environmental impacts, energy demand, and water usage.