Rio Grande County, Colorado, Enacts Year-Long Data Center Moratorium and Prohibits Large-Scale Facilities
The Rio Grande County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a year-long data center moratorium and simultaneously prohibited all large-scale and hyperscale data centers in the county. This decision was prompted by significant public concern and aims to allow county departments to address existing land use codes for data centers.
The Rio Grande County Board of Commissioners recently enacted a year-long moratorium on data centers and simultaneously prohibited all large-scale and hyperscale data centers within the county. The unanimous decision, made during a regular meeting, allows county departments time to develop comprehensive land use codes for data centers, which previously did not exist. Commissioners indicated they are adopting definitions for data center scales from the Colorado Municipal League.
This action follows significant public outcry and concerns about data center construction, particularly evident during a public hearing two weeks prior where over 30 individuals voiced opposition. Similar measures have been taken in other parts of Colorado's San Luis Valley, including Saguache County, the town of South Fork, and Costilla County. While Alamosa County is currently considering a small-scale data center project from Strata Inc., the city of Alamosa is also set to debate its own temporary moratorium on "Utility Scale Battery Energy Storage Systems and Large Load Data Centers."