Land Clearing Starts for $1 Billion York County Data Center

QTS has initiated tree removal across hundreds of acres near Lake Wylie in York County, South Carolina, for a planned $1 billion data center campus. The expansive development, which will comprise nine buildings and potentially create 200 jobs with an average salary of $80,000, now encompasses nearly 800 acres after QTS acquired additional land for $26.1 million in December 2023, following an initial acquisition and a tax break agreement with York County officials. The project has encountered significant opposition from nearby residents and environmental advocates. Stacy Armstrong, a Rock Hill resident who launched a petition against the development, voiced concerns that projects of this industrial scale are incompatible with existing residential communities, waterways, and natural resources. Many families chose the area for its peaceful, waterfront setting and did not fully grasp the project's magnitude until land clearing began, she stated, emphasizing the concern over the loss of mature forest that served as a wildlife habitat and natural buffer. Taylor Allred, who directs state energy and climate programs at the Coastal Conservation League, echoed environmental concerns, highlighting threats to animals, increased stormwater runoff and soil erosion into creeks, and exacerbated flooding risks. Allred also pointed out that large server farms like this require vast amounts of electricity, potentially leading to the construction of new electrical systems. In response to these concerns, QTS issued a statement asserting that the data centers would employ closed-loop cooling systems to minimize water usage. The company also committed to replanting more trees than are removed during construction and stated that an independent environmental review found no threat to endangered species. QTS affirmed its dedication to best management practices for land and water conservation, proposing a mitigation plan to restore and preserve more streams within the York County service area than the project would affect.