Residents of Archbald, Pennsylvania, are organizing in opposition to planned data centers that, if approved, could cover almost 15% of the small town.
As The Washington Post detailed, developers in the former coal town tucked are encountering resistance from its 7,000 residents as they progress with building plans.
The plans are for six data center campuses, which would include 51 data warehouses — each about the size of a Walmart Supercenter. Plans also include 574 diesel generators as backup power for the data centers. The centers will support the growing demand for artificial intelligence.
The situation began in 2023, when local authorities amended zoning laws to permit the construction of data storage facilities. A facility was planned to be built near the nuclear-powered, 500-kilovolt Susquehanna-Roseland power line that cuts through Lackawanna County. From there, plans for several more centers were approved.
Data centers have sparked opposition across the country, and it appears to be growing. Community pushback has paused or canceled multiple projects, and Maine recently became the first state to ban new data center construction. Nevertheless, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has supported these facilities as a means to boost the economy.
Given the potential advantages of AI and data centers, these projects are unlikely to diminish anytime soon. However, neither is the opposition to them.
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In Archbald, residents feel that local leaders aren't doing enough to communicate risks to the community and the environment posed by pollution and resource depletion.
"I want to know the effects of electricity usage, water usage, noise pollution, light pollution," Michael Pilch said.
Four council members have resigned, and data center opponents now hold three of those seats.
While approvals could take months or years, builders are forging ahead. Permits are not required to cut trees on private property as long as the earth is not disturbed, and one of the developers took action, cutting down about 180 acres of forest. This forest was home to bears, deer, coyotes, and owls.
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"Those animals now have no place to go," said Tim Bachak, whose home borders this now-missing forest, the Post reported. "It's disgusting. Why are they putting these things near us, near our schools, and near our parks?"
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