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With the alarming increase in data centers across the country, we are witnessing the staggering impacts these facilities have on everything from regional grids and residential utility bills to the water supply and air quality of surrounding communities. While data centers are undoubtedly a part of our daily tech-filled lives, it is essential for Delawareans to understand the harm of data center buildout continuing in an unsustainable manner.
That is why we have come together with partner organizations from across the state to form the Delaware Data Center Coalition for Local, Environmental, and Accountable Regulation (DE-CLEAR). Learn more about DE-CLEAR here.
Delmarva Power has now confirmed that they are working with 6 new data center projects that would add 2.1 GigaWatts (2100 MegaWatts) of demand to the grid. That would nearly double out current peak energy use of 2.4GW of the entire state of Delaware!
If you are interested in volunteering with our work on data centers, or if you are with an organization and would like for Sierra Club to present to your organization, please reach out to Marissa.McClenton@sierraclub.org
What is a data center?
A data center can refer to a building or group of buildings that house servers, hardware, networking equipment, and other computing technologies.
Data centers come in a wide variety of sizes and uses to match. There are smaller data centers that store information for research purposes and large ones that run cloud computing for industries such as Meta, Amazon, and Google.
The servers and computing technologies that comprise data centers generate substantial amounts of heat 24/7, with most relying on freshwater resources to cool themselves. Due to the sensitivity of the technology, those who are dependent on air or liquid cooling have to use purified (drinking) water.
Due to the energy-intensive nature of cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), and cryptocurrency mining, data centers sharply increase demand on the regional grid where they are located. This drives up demand and prices of energy in the region, which will be reflected in the energy bills of both residential and business customers.
What are the top four concerns around data centers?
Energy
Data centers use a massive amount of energy, which can and have dramatically increased electricity costs for residential and business customers in the region by pulling energy off the regional grid (PJM) markets. These impacts can be even larger in the states where they develop, but a hyper-scale data center that isn't sited appropriately in the PJM footprint can have negative consequences for the region. Residents should be asking where the power is going to come from and how ratepayers will be protected against continual price increases.
Air Pollution
Data centers require 24/7 power to operate and must have backup generators on site that can handle 100% of their capacity. Although these can be storage technologies, such as hydrogen or batteries, most data centers opt for diesel generators, which generate noise and air pollution as they run.
A small to medium-sized data center has up to 54 trailer-sized, one to three megawatt (MW) diesel (occasionally gas) powered generators to serve as an emergency power source. These generators are tested monthly and run during power outages; however, communities living near data centers across the country report that some generators operate 24/7.
Because generators do not have smokestacks that carry air pollution up away from ground level, local air quality can be severely harmed when generators are running for back up power or being tested. Project Washington, for example, plans to install 516 generators on their site. Those 516 generators would produce as much pollution as the 3 largest natural gas plants in Delaware combined if they were to run for just 20 days a year, and all of the pollution would be at ground level. This would have severe implications for those with asthma or other cardiovascular issues.
Water Usage
Data centers that utilize open-loop cooling use millions of gallons of water a day to keep the electronics inside from overheating. They have to use purified water, so they usually pull from the same sources that residences and businesses use. Residents should be asking where the water will come from, how it will be treated, and how it will be discharged. They should also demand closed-loop, evaporative liquid/immersion cooling systems that rely less on water, uses less energy, and reduce noises.
The average data center uses about 1.9 liters of water (.475 gallons) per kWh for cooling. Based on the projected size of this data center, it would use just between 4.35 and 4.75 billion gallons of water per year for cooling. About 80% of this water just evaporates, and the other roughly billion gallons need to be treated at a local wastewater treatment plant, many of which are already struggling to keep pace with current growth. This is particularly true of open-loop systems, though closed loop systems can still use a lot of water depending on the exact cooling type.
Data centers also indirectly use approximately 1.2 gallons of water per kWh for energy production. This would mean that for a project of this size, over 10 billion gallons of water are used annually for energy production. This may not be water used in Delaware, but in drought-stricken areas or periods of scarcity, this can still have a significant impact across the region.
Noise Pollution
Data centers that use air cooled systems produce noise that can be heard up to two miles from the facility, with the worst noise being up to 3000 feet from the facility. The noise can have significant health implications for nearby residents and wildlife, and the low-frequency noise from the cooling fans cannot be blocked using traditional sound barriers. Residents should ask how the project will eliminate noise impacts on nearby housing. One option is to use evaporative, closed-loop immersion cooling/direct to chip cooling, which can reduce noise impacts significantly due to the lack of fans needed for the cooling process.
This includes Project Washington, the "Newark Project," and the "Frightland Project." This site will be updated as new projects or information is released.
Requires the Public Service Commission (PSC)/Delmarva Power (DPL) to establish a specific rate class for Large Loads (Data Centers) to protect residential and small business customers. Includes important provisions like minimum contract length/early exit fees, consideration of climate and energy goals, a guarantee that any long term infrastructure costs are paid for by the data centers, and much more.
Requires the Public Service Commission to create a new “Certificate to Operate” for large loads like data centers. The PSC would then be required to ensure that the costs of transmission upgrades, building new power plants, and other grid improvements related to building data centers in Delaware is paid for by the data center as a condition to operate in the state. The bill does not allow the PSC to say "no" to data centers, but it does require them to ensure financial commitments from each individual project to avoid spreading those costs to Delaware families and small businesses.
Learn More about Data Centers in Delaware and These Bills Here:
It is crucial that we continue collaboration with other states to pressure PJM to assist state agencies and utilities in obtaining the necessary data and modeling to provide adequate load planning and cost allocations. States should also require PJM to establish a new interconnection process to help manage load growth across the PJM footprint and ensure proper protections are in place for consumers.
Areas of high energy demand, like data centers, should seek to provide their own energy and structure their operations to avoid negative noise and environmental impacts on the surrounding communities and environment. We must ensure that ratepayers and citizens are not paying the price for this economic growth.
With proper community engagement, environmental and energy regulation and policy, and sustainable building principles, there is a way to get the job creation and tax revenue that data centers can bring without having severe impacts on community members, the electric grid, or the environment.