Local Opposition Stalls $68 Billion in US Data Center Projects
Data center opposition blocked or delayed 45 US projects worth $68 billion between April and June, according to research group Data Center Watch. Public sentiment keeps souring, and statehouses are catching up with moratoriums on new construction and tighter rules. Sponsored Sponsored 30 Statehouses Move on Data Center Rules Some 30 statehouses introduced or adopted measures covering siting, electricity, and water issues, Watch said. Communities increasingly move before developers can file for permits. The pace of disruption has eased since the start of the year. The firm recorded 75 blocked or delayed projects worth roughly $130 billion between January and March. Even so, the 45 projects made up more than half of all new large-scale developments tracked during the quarter. That squeeze has turned Bitcoin miners into unlikely landlords, because their already-permitted power sites are some of the few places an artificial intelligence (AI) developer can plug in without waiting years for a grid connection. Notably, active opposition groups now number 843 across 49 states, with Hawaii the only exception. Online organizing is amplifying the pressure. One Tennessee petition drew more than 500,000 signatures on Change.org. Amazon data centers consumed 2.5 billion gallons of water in a single year. That volume is sufficient to fill roughly 3800 Olympic









