Data-center project raises questions over future of historic chestnut grove in West Virginia
Nscale’s proposed Point Pleasant data center campus could incorporate the former Clements State Tree Nursery, which contains a historically important American chestnut grove. State officials say a plan is being developed to preserve the trees, but the American Chestnut Foundation says it has not been formally included in discussions and warns that relocating the mature trees could kill them.
Nscale is considering the former Clements State Tree Nursery as part of its 126-acre Point Pleasant data center campus in Mason County. The property includes a 1.3-acre grove of mature American chestnut trees planted from nuts collected from surviving wild trees; the grove produces seeds for West Virginia and the Ohio Valley and is considered historically significant.
Nscale senior vice president Pete Hollis said the company has worked with the West Virginia Department of Agriculture and Division of Natural Resources and that development of the grove’s portion of the site is still years away. Gov. Patrick Morrisey said the state is coordinating with multiple agencies and has a plan to preserve the trees. However, Amy Metheny of the American Chestnut Foundation said the organization has not had formal communication with Morrisey’s office or Nscale, and warned that moving the roughly 50-year-old trees could cause them to die because their root systems cannot be excavated intact. Nscale has not finalized its property purchase or determined the final development and relocation plans.