Protect Kansas launches petition seeking restrictions on data centers in Topeka area
Protect Kansas has launched a petition campaign seeking restrictions on high-impact and hyperscale data centers in Topeka and Shawnee County. The proposed measures would ban data centers within Topeka city limits, block annexation of proposed county sites, and prevent the city from supplying water to the facilities, citing environmental impacts and utility costs.
Protect Kansas is collecting signatures on three petitions aimed at limiting hyperscale data center development in the Topeka area. One petition would prohibit data centers within Topeka city limits, another would stop the annexation of proposed sites in Shawnee County, and a third would bar the city from providing water to the facilities.
Organizers cited environmental concerns, electricity demand and utility costs, noting that a proposed 600-megawatt facility could use nearly as much power as the entire county. Topeka Mayor Spencer Duncan said earlier discussions and decisions about data centers would be conducted publicly.