Commissioners to hear from opponents of data center plan

A group of citizens in Lee County, North Carolina who have been speaking out against a rumored proposal to build a data center powered by a natural gas mining operation will push the issue again before the Lee County Board of Commissioners on Monday. The commissioners are scheduled to hear a presentation from the Southern Environmental Law Center about the possible impacts of an unconfirmed plan by Deep River Data to place a data center near the Lee-Chatham county line. Local residents and environmental groups like the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League have been urging the county to enact a temporary moratorium on data centers to allow time for planning. The Sanford Area Growth Alliance, the public-private partnership leading Lee County's economic development efforts, issued a statement distancing itself from the rumored project. SAGA said it stands firmly against fracking in Lee County and that the proposal is not affiliated with or supported by the organization. However, SAGA did say that responsible data centers could provide significant economic benefits to the community, citing examples from other North Carolina counties.