Cheyenne investigates bacterial contamination linked to Meta data center wastewater discharge
Cheyenne, Wyoming's Board of Public Utilities detected a dangerous bacteria, Cupriavidus gilardii, in the city's wastewater system, which it linked to a Meta data center project. This led the city to indefinitely ban data center projects from disposing of "fill-and-flush water" in the sewer system. The incident has intensified public opposition to data centers and prompted an ongoing investigation and potential fines.
The Board of Public Utilities in Cheyenne, Wyoming, initiated an investigation after detecting Cupriavidus gilardii, a potentially lethal and heavy metal-resistant bacteria, in the city's wastewater treatment system. This led to the shutdown of the public water reuse system due to concerns about environmental release and health risks to vulnerable populations.
The board identified Goat Systems LLC, a firm contracted by Meta for its $800 million "Project Cosmo" hyperscale data center in Cheyenne, as the source. Officials claim the bacteria originated from water used to flush the Meta data center's closed-loop cooling system. As a result, Goat Systems LLC lost its wastewater disposal permit, and the board plans to impose fines for code violations and remediation efforts. Following this discovery, Cheyenne has implemented an indefinite ban on data center projects disposing of "fill-and-flush water" into the city's sewer system.
Meta has not denied the contamination but states its internal sampling has not corroborated the city's findings, indicating Fortis, a construction company hired by Meta and Goat Systems, was responsible for water disposal. Fortis confirmed its responsibility for dumping water when contamination was discovered but also claims its independent testing has found no trace of the bacteria. Despite Meta's commitment to collaboration, the incident has amplified public concerns about water usage and pollution from data centers, particularly spreading on social media among anti-data center groups nationwide.
Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins acknowledged the situation will make it challenging to attract more data centers, even as the city council is scheduled to vote on annexing land for future data center developments. University of Wyoming Professor Dr. Jonathan Brand expressed concerns that the bacteria might be a "canary in the coal mine" for other residual metals that went untested. The city government of Cheyenne plans to hold a press conference to release more information about the contamination.