Data centers have become a highly controversial topic as people look to find a balance between technological advancement and protecting our natural resources.
Taking these concerns into consideration, the New Orleans City Council has passed a year-long ban on data centers. According to the Associated Press, this will give the council time to consider long-term solutions to the issues data centers cause.
Data center development is of particular concern in New Orleans East, where residents and politicians have talked about their worries regarding an increase in energy and water consumption.
This decision follows an increase in data center construction across the U.S. to keep up with the growing demand for artificial intelligence. There are already 4,000 of these centers in operation across the country, with nearly 3,000 more planned for construction in 2026, per Axios. As these centers require a lot of resources and land, they are most commonly built in rural areas.
While AI offers numerous benefits, such as optimizing clean energy systems and better innovation, it is hard to ignore the environmental impact that these large centers have. Data centers are notorious for their high energy and water usage.
According to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, large data centers can consume up to five million gallons of water every day, which is the same amount of water used in a town with a population of 10,000 to 50,000 people.
Data centers also create a lot of noise pollution, and there is worry that their presence also causes house prices to decrease, which are all concerns that residents have.
By taking this step, the New Orleans City Council has demonstrated that it is committed to climate action and protecting its natural resources. The council will use this year to carry out a proper review that will make recommendations on zoning uses for data centers.
This bold move will enable the city council to define data centers, which could close any loopholes in legislation and lead to the long-term blocking of their construction.
"At the end of the day this is a major first step," said Council member Jason Hughes, per the AP.
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