Neighbors say noise from Michigan data center is 24/7 and upending their lives
Residents in Watervliet, Michigan, are experiencing constant high-pitched noise from a data center, disrupting their lives and leading to a class-action lawsuit. The city has adopted a noise ordinance, which the data center operator, Hyperscale Data/Alliance Cloud Services, is challenging while planning expansion.
Residents of Watervliet, Michigan, particularly Lindy Valenzuela and Marjorie, are living across the street from a data center, identified as Hyperscale Data and owned by Alliance Cloud Services, LLC. They report constant, high-pitched noise, likened to a clogged vacuum, which has been ongoing 24/7 for a couple of years and has drastically changed their quality of life. The data center began as a cryptocurrency mining operation in 2021, with significant noise starting around 2024.
In response to resident concerns, Watervliet city leaders adopted the city's first industrial noise ordinance in March, setting daytime and nighttime decibel limits. Hyperscale Data is reportedly challenging the city's noise readings and methodology. Despite this, the company plans a $100 million expansion to pivot from cryptocurrency mining to AI computing and advanced robotics. At a special council meeting, Hyperscale Data CEO William Horne addressed residents, stating the company would reduce sound levels and offered to buy properties on Louise Avenue if residents remained unhappy. However, no residents at the meeting supported Hyperscale.
Rick Neitzel, a Professor of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Michigan, expressed concern about this "unprecedented new noise source" and its association with health issues like high blood pressure, heart attacks, and stroke. Lindy Valenzuela has joined a class-action lawsuit against the data center, citing her family's inability to enjoy their home and concerns for her infant son's exposure to the noise. Hyperscale Data issued a statement acknowledging resident concerns, reiterating their commitment to reducing sound levels by transitioning away from cryptocurrency mining, with half the equipment already offline.