Amazon to install hundreds of gas-fired generators at Bucks County data center site
Pennsylvania environmental regulators are planning to approve Amazon's request to install 280 natural gas-fired and three diesel-fired backup generators at its data center complex in Bucks County. This decision has met with strong opposition from Falls Township residents who are concerned about increased air pollution in an already "pollution-stressed area." A public comment period on the air quality plan approval will commence once it is published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) intends to approve Amazon's proposal to install 280 natural gas-fired and three diesel-fired backup generators at its 250-acre data center complex under construction in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. This decision follows Amazon's prior installation of 76 diesel generators at the site, located at the Keystone Trade Center, a former U.S. Steel mill. The generators are intended to provide backup power when the electricity supply from utility PECO is interrupted.
The plan has drawn significant local opposition, with residents expressing concerns about increased emissions in an area they consider already "pollution-stressed." During a tense public meeting at Pennsbury East High School, Falls Township resident Seema Kazmi voiced worries about the environmental impact. The DEP's air quality plan approval will be subject to a 30-day public comment period once published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin, estimated for July 18.
Jillian Gallagher, an air quality environmental program manager at DEP, stated that Amazon has agreed to limit annual emissions of volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides to under 25 tons per year by installing control systems and limiting fuel use, classifying the site as a "synthetic minor" source. The data center complex is part of Amazon's $20 billion investment in Pennsylvania, which includes another facility in Salem Township and is projected to create 1,250 permanent jobs.