Pa.’s Environmental Rights Amendment is the focus of a Lycoming County data center fight
Property owners and Muncy Township officials are challenging Pennsylvania land-use provisions in court over a proposed three-building data center campus in Muncy Township. The township enacted a nine-month moratorium on data center applications, while the developer claims its proposal was automatically approved after officials failed to hold a required hearing.
Property owners near a proposed three-building data center campus in Muncy Township have joined township supervisors and the environmental group Green Amendments for the Generations in a lawsuit against the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The plaintiffs argue that provisions of the Municipal Planning Code conflict with the Pennsylvania Constitution’s Environmental Rights Amendment and violate due process, property and free-expression rights.
The dispute began after Muncy Township approved a nine-month moratorium on data center applications while officials developed new zoning rules. The developer contends that its application was automatically approved because the township failed to hold a hearing within the required 60-day period. The case comes amid a broader wave of proposed Pennsylvania data centers and debate over their potential effects on water, electricity, pollution and noise, as state officials pursue new standards for responsible development.