In the past year, at least a dozen new hyperscale data centers have been proposed in communities across Minnesota.
The Minnesota legislature, with the support of the Walz administration, passed a handful of laws last year in an attempt to address concerns about this massive, new-to-Minnesota development. Unfortunately, those laws primarily tackled energy and taxes. Minnesota remains unprepared for the potential impacts hyperscale data centers may have on our water, landscapes, and communities, and given the prevalence of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), folks are often left out of the planning process.
Hyperscale data centers demand staggering amounts of electricity and water.
If the dozen proposed data centers are built, they could consume as much electricity as all 2.3 million homes in Minnesota combined and millions of gallons of groundwater each year. Unfortunately, the state has not fully considered the long-term consequences of these projects on our local communities, electricity rates, power grid, water resources, and environment, despite offering generous tax breaks and actively courting developers and operators, often under NDAs and away from the public eye.
Act Now to Protect Our Communities and Environment
Tell Governor Walz, Lt. Governor Flanagan, and your state senator that it is unacceptable to sell out Minnesota’s health, resources, and future to make billionaires even richer. Ask them to support S.F. 4298, which demands a comprehensive study about the environmental, economic, and social impacts of these hyperscale data centers.
