This Arizona tribe said no to data centers on its nearly 1 million-acre reservation

The Hualapai Tribal Council in northern Arizona has enacted a moratorium on hyperscale data center development on its nearly 1 million-acre reservation. Hualapai Chairman Duane Clarke stated that such facilities, especially those powering AI, pose "a direct and severe threat to the tribe's sacred water, lands, environment, and way of life." The tribe is committed to protecting its natural resources and will oppose data centers on its reservation, while also standing with other communities.

Concerns over data center development and water consumption are also spreading to neighboring Arizona municipalities. Residents of Bullhead City are worried about potential rezoning proposals that could lead to data center development downstream of the Hoover Dam. Furthermore, the city of Page recently sold 500 acres to Huntley, LLC for a prospective $10 billion data center project near Horseshoe Bend and the Navajo Nation. The Page City Council approved the controversial $7 million land sale last October, despite the LeChee Chapter, the closest Navajo community, unanimously adopting a resolution against the deal in February. LeChee residents accused Page officials of lacking transparency and failing to consider environmental impacts on the Navajo people.

The proposed Page data center, intended to be a 1 gigawatt facility, is still subject to a feasibility study regarding its sustainability. Page officials maintain that no municipal water sources have been committed to the project and rumors about drawing from Lake Powell are speculative. The Hualapai's resolution emphasizes that no external entity may use or compromise their resources without the tribe's free, prior, and informed consent.