Local moratoriums on data centers are becoming more popular across North Carolina as public opposition to the facilities continues to grow.
Leaders in Apex are considering a one-year pause on new data centers for the town. The moratorium would give its council time to review regulations and community concerns.
“The big underlying issue is Apex doesn’t have any rules about data centers in our ordinances,” Apex Mayor Pro Tem Terry Mahaffey told NC Newsline.
Apex’s town council voted unanimously March 10 to have staff write up a proposal for a moratorium, according to WUNC. Leaders could decide on it as soon as next month.
The proposal comes about as plans for a data center project that could’ve generated at least $4 million were scrapped, at least for now.
Natalli Investments withdrew its application to start construction near Apex earlier this month, ABC 11 reported. The company may look at the project again if Apex approves data centers in its zoning ordinance, according to ABC 11.
Residents formed the Protect Wake County Coalition to oppose the development. The group cited concerns about noise and air pollution, water use, power grid strain, farmland loss and the impact on nearby schools and neighborhoods.
There are also concerns about rising electricity costs. Data centers account for about 80% of Duke Energy’s projected growth in energy demand, according to Gov. Josh Stein’s North Carolina Energy Policy Task Force.
In the meantime, Apex is taking time to focus on writing rules about data centers.
Mahaffey said town leaders didn’t want to enact a moratorium while a data center application was ongoing, because then it would look like the pause was intended to stop the application, which could lead to legal trouble.
“With them gone, there’s no reason not to do a moratorium to make it clear what our plan is, which is to finish writing our rules,” he said. “We’re looking to write a set of rules that are reasonable and protect our residents from the negative impacts of the use nearby in their community.”
Apex isn’t the first community to push back against data centers.
In recent weeks, Chatham County, Gates County and the town of Canton in Haywood County have all passed similar 12-month moratoriums on data centers and cryptocurrency mining facilities. And community residents sued Stokes County last week to block a large planned data center, citing damage to environmentally sensitive areas and cultural sites.
Northern Virginia has historically dominated the American data center market. The industry is seeing rapid growth with about 3,000 new data centers under construction or planned across the country, Axios reported in December.
While Texas leads the growth — the state is known for its plentiful and inexpensive land, as well as independent power grid and tax incentives — companies are eyeing North Carolina as well.
“We have pretty strong fiber optic connectivity in the state. We’re fairly close to other operations like those in the broader eastern seaboard and Northern Virginia,” said Jackson Ewing, the director of energy and climate policy at Duke University’s Nicholas Institute. “We’re not particularly water scarce compared to some other states. You put all those together, and North Carolina can look like a fairly attractive place for sites.”
North Carolina currently has about 100 data centers, according to Data Center Map. Most of these are older, smaller facilities that are self-contained.
Newer data centers, though, are often hyperscale centers, designed to handle artificial intelligence processing. These facilities demand massive amounts of power and water, because the computing behind it generates extreme heat, which in turn requires evaporative cooling.
The newer facilities are the ones receiving the most pushback from community residents, said Ayse Coskun, a professor at Boston University whose research focuses on data center power management. There are ways to avoid overburdening local power supplies, though.
“If data centers are designed as flexible loads, meaning they can temporarily reduce or shift their electricity use during grid stress times, then they can support more stability,” Coskun said.
Proponents of data centers cite economic benefits, like job creation and investments in regional infrastructure.
Google announced last week a $1 billion investment in improving its existing data center in Lenoir, a town in western North Carolina. The facility supports services like Search, Maps, Photos, Workspace and YouTube.
Lenoir Mayor Joseph Gibbons said the investment underscores a deep commitment to North Carolina’s growth and success, according to Google’s announcement.
“This funding will enhance our workforce, expand economic development opportunities, and ensure North Carolina remains a leader in innovation,” he said.
Hence then, the article about apex weighs pause on data centers as resistance spreads across nc was published today ( ) and is available on NC news line ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Apex weighs pause on data centers as resistance spreads across NC )
Also on site :