Opinion | Wisconsin communities fighting back against corporate excess

An opinion piece in The Cap Times by Bill Berry highlights a growing wave of citizen activism in Wisconsin communities, particularly concerning data center developments and their environmental impacts. Port Washington, a Milwaukee suburb, recently passed a pioneering referendum by a 2-to-1 margin, which will require voter permission and prohibit tax incentives for any future AI data center construction. This move was driven by local concerns over the massive water and energy consumption associated with such facilities, a concern amplified by an existing $15 billion data center in the city funded by Oracle and OpenAI. Further demonstrating this trend, a proposed $12 billion data center by Virginia-based QTS Data Centers in DeForest, Dane County, was declared "not feasible" by officials in January, after residents, who only learned of the plans in October due to non-disclosure agreements, vigorously opposed the project. Additionally, the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) is facing a lawsuit from Midwest Environmental Advocates for withholding unredacted records detailing projected energy demand for a data center in Beaver Dam. These local victories and ongoing battles are seen as setting a precedent, with groups like Great Lakes Neighbors United actively working to empower communities. The article also notes a national political dimension, with the AI industry planning significant spending to influence elections towards favorable legislation, while U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have proposed a national moratorium on data centers to address their widespread impacts.