“It is up to us, a small rural community, to stand up and fight to preserve fresh clean water, critical habitat, and for the economic and environmental health of our community.”
On August 18, Pennsylvania Governor Shapiro signed an Executive Order (EO) that the Governor’s office says “lays out strict requirements that data center developers must meet regarding energy affordability, community engagement, workforce and economic development, transparency, and environmental protection – and gives local municipalities a greater say over development in their communities.”
Folks in communities across Pennsylvania are concerned about the local, regional, and broader impacts of data center projects proposed in their areas. Let’s take a look at this Executive Order (EO) and explore what it does and doesn’t actually do, and what it means for communities who are thinking about what they should do in the face of the Pennsylvania data center rush.
Landowners may be curious as to who has the right to make a decision about a creek on their private property, and the answer is not necessarily a straightforward one. Unfortunately, the “right” to make decisions about waterways on a private property is multifaceted and not always just up to the landowner.
Baseline monitoring can help community members address concerns about environmental and personal health risks associated with data centers and other industrial development.
Baseline monitoring helps to:
Create a record that shows a variety of impacts to the environment before, during, and after development to record any potential changes
Collect data for community organizing efforts by showcasing the impacts of industrial development on the area
Potentially help meet a legal burden of proof that an industrial project negatively impacted a community
Baseline Monitoring helps establish written and visual records of environmental conditions over time. It can take years before a facility is permitted, built, and ready for operations. The time lag makes it difficult to recall pre-construction conditions accurately enough to establish a “before and after” comparison.
Legal Lowdown
Despite the perceptions that data centers operate in somewhat of a regulatory “gray area,” they are subject to regulation. Unfortunately, the legal frameworks surrounding this industry remain fragmented, site-specific, and quickly evolving as our various bodies of government attempt to respond to the industry’s rapid growth.
Residents throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, are raising the alarm as new data centers, warehouses, and industrial facilities move in rapidly leading to public concerns surrounding noise, water, and power-usage. How is this happening so fast? Too often, municipalities approve these developments through quiet but completely legal rezoning processes. Many communities are left wondering: Can zoning rules really be changed that easily? Why don't we know about it? How can we get involved before final decisions are made? How does this work, and is there anything I can do about it?
Here's how the zoning process works, how municipalities change their zoning maps and codes, what the legal requirements are, and how you can better advocate to protect your community from these unwanted changes.
