Saguache County places moratorium on data center projects

Saguache County, Colorado, officially adopted an emergency temporary moratorium on all new data center projects within its unincorporated territory for a period of six months, effective May 5. The resolution was prompted by three inquiries received by the San Luis Valley Rural Electric Cooperative (SLVREC) for potential "rural data center" projects in the Valley, although Saguache Land Use Administrator Amber Wilson clarified her office had not received any official applications. The stated purpose of the moratorium is to provide the County sufficient time to develop and amend the Saguache County Land Use Code, Standards, and 1041 Regulations. This legislative action aims to establish an improved process and standards for data center project requests, addressing concerns among Saguache County residents, with Commissioner Liza Marron noting that "Everybody in our county is upset about data centers." Any changes to the land use code will require review by the County Planning Commission and a public hearing. Neighboring Alamosa County is also considering updates to its codes to address stand-alone data centers, though it has not received any applications. Richard Hubler, Alamosa County Land Use and Building Director, highlighted the potential impacts of hyperscale data centers on housing, energy, and water, contrasting them with smaller, container-based "rural data centers" that might better fit existing capacity. SLVREC CEO Eric Eriksen has championed rural data centers, citing the San Luis Valley's high altitude, cool sunshine, and robust broadband as ideal conditions. Eriksen detailed that rural data centers are typically small, efficient facilities, often operating at 50 kilowatts to 50 megawatts, significantly less than hyperscale facilities. These smaller centers commonly use air-cooling or closed-loop refrigeration, reducing water consumption. SLVREC sees these projects as an opportunity to utilize underutilized capacity due to declining agriculture energy demand, potentially offering economic and technological benefits to the Valley by processing data closer to home.