Fortis

Cheyenne BOPU traces rare bacteria discharge to Meta data center contractor

A contractor for Meta's data center in Cheyenne, Goat Systems LLC, was identified as the source of a rare bacteria, Cupriavidus gilardii, discharged into the city's wastewater system. In response, the Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities (BOPU) temporarily suspended reclaimed water irrigation, terminated Meta's discharge privileges, and adopted new policies restricting data center wastewater discharges from certain cooling systems. The incident did not affect drinking water, but some bacteria entered Crow Creek.