The EPA Is Planning to Scrap Public Review Rules for Data Center Pollution
The EPA is considering removing requirements for public review and comment on air-pollution permits for new data centers. Critics argue this move reduces transparency and disproportionately impacts marginalized communities near industrial sites.
Why it matters
It highlights the tension between the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure and the environmental and democratic rights of local communities.
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Americans don’t agree on much, but that’s not the case when it comes to data centers.
Seven in 10 Americans oppose building data centers for artificial intelligence in or near their communities. Despite this, the federal government is moving to make it easier for them to be built. And in some places, residents won’t even get the chance to raise concerns publicly or even know if a data center is coming to their neighborhoods.
The federal Environmental Protection Agency plans to scrap a federal requirement that states tell the public — and allow public comment — before approving air-pollution permits for industrial facilities. That includes the data centers rising across the country, as well as the power plants built to feed their enormous appetite for electricity.
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