Local Zoning and Environmental Protections: Local Communities Best Defense Against Data Centers

By: Michael Bartz

With the mass proliferation and investment in artificial intelligence, data centers are being built to keep up with ever-increasing resource requirements. The AI market is growing at roughly 40% per year and is expected to be a $1 trillion industry in 2032.[1] By 2030, global investment in data centers will amount to roughly $7 trillion, with more than 40% of the total investment being in the United States.[2] However, development of data centers across the United States is not geographically uniform. Roughly 60% of domestic data centers are in just ten states, with Virginia, Texas, and California being the most concentrated.[3] Large data centers are often built in rural communities where they can receive substantial tax breaks.[4]

The massive expansion of data centers and projected future developments have highlighted the issues that come along with them. Data centers can increase emissions, strain local water and power resources, and create noise pollution. According to the World Economic Forum, 1% of the world’s energy-related greenhouse gas emissions are attributable to data center electricity usage.[5] Future investment in data centers will lead to increased electrical requirements, thus increasing greenhouse gas emissions.[6] Data centers can also be an enormous drain on local freshwater resources. A large data center can consume up to 5 million gallons of water per day, which is a consumption level equivalent to a town with 10,000 to 50,000 residents.[7] A data center’s water usage is largely dictated by its climate, size, and rack density. For example, a large data center with high rack density in a hotter climate requires more water to cool the equipment and building.[8] Data centers also draw heavily from the electrical grid, driving up prices for residents. In 2023, data centers were responsible for 26% of Virginia’s total electrical consumption. With even more data center growth promised in the future, this issue could be exacerbated.[9] Data centers produce noise pollution through rooftop fan installations, testing of backup diesel generators, power substations and lines, construction noise, and the hum of data processors.[10] Noise pollution has been linked to increased rates if hypertension, heart disease, sleep deprivation and disturbances, cognitive and learning impairments in children, premature death in adults, hearing loss, reduced productivity, anti-social behavior, and absenteeism.[11]

Given all the potential downsides of data centers, some communities are pushing back.[12] Communities have organized protests to voice their disapproval of proposed data centers, and this activism has been successful in getting projects canceled.[13] Private citizens and interest groups have also filed lawsuits against proposed data centers.[14] Such lawsuits challenge local zoning decisions and environmental protections. While zoning and environmental protections for local areas have traditionally been a purely local matter, it is now being wielded in a way that has sweeping ramifications. For example, the current litigation surrounding the Prince William gDigital Gateway has brought together a homeowner’s association and several non-profit conservation groups. The proposed 37 data centers would sit on a 1,750-acre lot surrounding Manassas National Battlefield Park as well as adjoin the Oak Valley neighborhood.[15] The proposed data center would not only cause alleged harm to a historic battlefield, but the surrounding neighborhood as well. The application of local environmental and zoning laws to data centers is drawing significant news attention and driving litigation in these areas. Additionally, as more states pass legislation favorable to data center, more litigation challenging these new laws is expected.[16] These challenges will likely present novel legal issues that courts will have to rule on.[17] The future of data centers in the United States will likely be determined by local zoning and environmental protections, and those determinations could have nationwide impacts.

 

 

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[1] Nicole Turner Lee & Darrell M. West, The Future of Data Centers, Brookings Inst. (Nov. 5, 2025), https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-future-of-data-centers/.

[2] Adam Barth et al., The Data Center Balance: How US States Can Navigate the Opportunities and Challenges, McKinsey & Co. (Aug. 8, 2025), https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-sector/our-insights/the-data-center-balance-how-us-states-can-navigate-the-opportunities-and-challenges.

[3] Carla Walker & Ian Goldsmith, From Energy Use to Air Quality, the Many Ways Data Centers Affect US Communities, World Res. Inst. (Feb. 17, 2026), https://www.wri.org/insights/us-data-center-growth-impacts.

[4] Felicity Barringer, Thirsty for Power and Water, AI-Crunching Data Centers Sprout Across the West, Stan. Univ. Bill Lane Ctr. for the Am. West (Apr. 8, 2025), https://andthewest.stanford.edu/2025/thirsty-for-power-and-water-ai-crunching-data-centers-sprout-across-the-west/.

[5] David Costa, 6 Ways Data Centers Can Cut Their Emissions – Without Compromising the AI Boom, World Econ. F. (Jan. 16, 2025), https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/01/6-ways-data-centres-can-cut-emissions/.

[6] See id.

[7] Miguel Yañez-Barnuevo, Data Centers and Water Consumption, Environmental and Energy Study Inst. (June 25, 2025), https://www.eesi.org/articles/view/data-centers-and-water-consumption.

[8] Id.

[9] Id.

[10] Kevin J. Coyle, What Research Says About the Public Health Dangers of Noise Pollution, Prince William County Data Center Ordinance Advisory Committee (May 7, 2025), https://www.pwcva.gov/assets/2025-05/DCOAG%20White%20Paper%20-%20What%20Research%20Says%20About%20the%20Public%20Health%20Dangers%20of%20Noise%20Pollution%2020250507.pdf.

[11] Id.

[12] Ryan Murphy & Emily Feng, Why More Residents Are Saying ‘No’ to AI Data Centers in Their Backyard, NPR (July 17, 2025), https://www.npr.org/2025/07/17/nx-s1-5469933/virginia-data-centers-residents-saying-no.

[13] Zamone Perez, Data Center Cancellations Pile Up as Virginians Voice Opposition, The Va. Indep. (Feb. 27, 2026), https://virginiaindependentnews.com/infrastructure/data-center-cancellations-pile-up-as-virginians-voice-opposition/.

[14] See Rachel Chu & Samantha Baars, We’re Suing to Protect One of the Most Important Conservation Areas in the South from Data Centers, S. Env’t Law Ctr. (Jan. 9, 2026), https://www.selc.org/news/were-suing-to-protect-one-of-the-most-important-conservation-areas-in-the-south-from-data-centers/; Guido Jr. v. Colombia Cnty. Bd. of Comm’rs, 2026ECV0297 (2026).

[15] Rebecca Turco, Conservation Groups Support Lawsuit to Block Prince William Digital Gateway, ABC 7 (Jan. 16, 2026), https://wjla.com/news/local/six-conservation-groups-file-brief-supporting-lawsuit-against-pwc-digital-gateway.

[16] Joshua A. Geltzer et al., State of Regulation of Data Centers: Emerging Trends and Potential Legal Complexities, WilmerHale (Feb. 23, 2026), https://www.wilmerhale.com/en/insights/client-alerts/20260223-state-regulation-of-data-centers-emerging-trends-and-potential-legal-complexities.

[17] Id.