How feds swapped a solar farm for a data center outside Boulder City
Boulder City leaders and residents are opposing a data center project approved by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The city council has voted to appeal the BLM's decision, which approved the data center by reusing an environmental review originally written for a solar facility on the same plot of land. This has sparked concerns about the precedent set by the BLM's land use approval process.
Boulder City leaders and residents are expressing strong opposition to a proposed data center project, alleging that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) circumvented proper procedures.
City Attorney Brittney Walker described the BLM's actions as unprecedented, stating that the federal agency approved a new land use, a data center campus, by reusing an environmental assessment previously drafted for a solar project on the same site. This move, according to Walker, sets a concerning precedent for BLM land use approvals in Nevada.
The project, spearheaded by a Texas-based company identified as Townsite Solar I, initially proposed a 19-megawatt solar farm. However, earlier this year, the company requested to develop a data center campus instead. Despite this significant change, the BLM reportedly moved forward without conducting a new environmental review or interagency consultation, simply amending the existing solar project assessment to include the data center.
On Tuesday, the Boulder City Council voted to appeal the BLM's June 26 approval of the data center project. Local leaders, including City Attorney Walker, have vowed to challenge the federal government's decision, emphasizing that the city was not adequately involved in the process.