Augustans can still submit feedback on data centers, attend public forum

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Augusta residents can still submit feedback online about the city's draft data center ordinance. And later this week, they can learn more about data centers at a public forum. A buffer zone, noise limits and closed loop cooling systems are among the potential rules data centers would have to follow under the draft ordinance. Augusta leaders recently extended a pause on new data centers development to gather feedback before adopting permanent rules. Under the current draft, future data centers would have to stay at least 500 feet away from residential or agricultural property, meet a 65-decibel noise limit at the property line, use closed-loop cooling systems and avoid private wells on-site. That would all apply to new projects going forward, but not to the QTS data center already planned next to the Haynes Station neighborhood off Gordon Highway in west Augusta. That project has become a flashpoint for nearby homeowners, some of whom say they didn't learn the full details until after buying their homes. City officials say the new ordinance is meant to put those kinds of protections in writing for the future. Mayor-elect Steven Kendrick has urged the city to use this week's meetings to fully hear residents' concerns while still leaving room for what he calls 'responsible' data center development. 'Augusta should not give every data center an automatic yes, but we also should not give an entire industry an automatic no, either,' Kendrick said. He's called for strict standards on where data centers can locate, substantial buffers, enforceable noise and water-use limits, and environmental safeguards, among other steps. Residents who can't attend tonight's meeting can still submit comments at www.augustaga.gov/3460/Draft-Data-Center-Ordinance. The Center for Community Awareness is holding a forum Thursday for residents to learn about the potential environmental and public health impacts of data centers. Public Service Commissioner for District 2 Dr. Alicia Johnson will speak about the PSC's role in making sure data centers do not disrupt the power grid. The forum runs from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Julian Smith Casino. Also participating will be Emory University panelists Dr. Melanie Pearson, Dr. Stephanie Eick and Dr. Danielle Wallace of the Rollins School of Public Health's Gangarosa Department of Environmental Health, along with Dr. Kristin Phillips of Emory's Department of Anthropology. 'Communities deserve access to understandable, credible information before decisions with potentially decades-long consequences are made,' said Zakiya Mabery, founder of C-CAPE and curator of the Data Centers & Public Accountability series. 'This series is not about telling people what to think. It is about making sure residents have access to diverse perspectives, subject-matter expertise and opportunities to ask informed questions about decisions that can affect their neighborhoods, utilities, environment and quality of life.' The event will be co-hosted by Augusta-Richmond County Commissioners Francine Scott and Lonnie Wimberly. The event is free and open to the public. Augusta's process is playing out against a larger backdrop of fights across the country. U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock has called for a statewide moratorium on new data centers, saying projects should only move forward if they don't raise water or electric bills and if communities get a real voice. Snakes and raccoons disrupted the start of the school year at Hancock County and McDuffie County schools last month, and the CSRA has seen an increase in rabies cases over the same period. He made the comments after hearing from neighbors near a planned OpenAI data center in Effingham County who say they were left out of early discussions. Some Americans worry data centers could cause pollution, job losses About 4 in 10 U.S. adults say they are 'extremely' or 'very' concerned about the environmental impacts of AI, according to a poll last year from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago. Families said they were given a 48-hour ultimatum to find a new school and a new plan. Americans are more likely to think that over the next decade, artificial intelligence will do more to hurt than help the environment, the economy and society as a whole, the poll found. Besides powering AI and cloud computing, data centers are often sources of nitrogen oxide, which helps form ozone, as well as carbon monoxide and other air pollutants. Local communities also have expressed concerns about excessive water use and noise from data centers. Many Americans worry that AI could increase economic disparities and cause widespread job losses. Data center advocates stress that local taxes paid by the centers can help fund public schools, reducing the financial burden on homeowners. Denmark Technical College and Morris College are teaming up to give students more ways to advance their education and careers. That's the hope in Columbia County, where leaders signed a data center deal with Google that officials say could eventually help eliminate a portion of homeowners' property tax bills.