An Atlanta-based environmental advocate is criticizing the Georgia Department of Community Affairs’ (DCA) decision to pause state reviews of new data center proposals.
Chris Manganiello, who is Water Policy Director for the non-profit Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, says while the decision will not stop local governments from approving data center projects, it will rob local water planners of the state’s expertise. His comments came during the kickoff meeting of a Georgia House subcommittee that’s looking into the potential impacts of the growing number of data centers springing up across the state and their effect on water resources. Data centers have exploded so quickly that elected officials in DeKalb, Coweta, Douglas, and Bartow counties have imposed moratoria on new projects.
The Atlanta City Council voted last month to prohibit data centers from setting up in some neighborhoods and require developers to seek a special-use permit for construction. The water subcommittee will hold two more meetings in South Georgia, one in Moultrie next month and the other in Claxton in September, before issuing findings and recommendations.
A second subcommittee is looking at how data centers are likely to affect consumption of electricity.