Data Center Concerns Grow Across Political Lines
Data center expansion across Iowa is drawing bipartisan concern over the loss of farmland, pressure on water supplies and rising electricity costs. Survey data cited in the article indicates that worries about these impacts increased among both Democratic and Republican respondents in 2026.
Data center developers are increasingly targeting rural Iowa communities, prompting concerns about converting prime farmland into industrial technology sites. Residents and farm managers are also focused on potential strain on water supplies and higher utility costs associated with expanded electricity demand.
A University of Illinois study found that concern about farmland loss, water use and utility rates rose across party lines between February and August 2026. Surveys indicated that roughly one-quarter of Midwestern farm managers had already been approached about potential data center development in early 2026.