This is something EVERYONE needs to pay attention to NOW:
The data industry continues to require an unparalleled amount of electrical energy to power massive facilities that are expanding their footprint to meet user demand. In places such as Northern Virginia and Silicon Valley, demand is quickly outpacing what the power utilities can supply. This is leading the data center industry to look into alternative sources of energy.
The solution they have come to is to go off the grid, supplying their own energy, but it is not necessarily good for those people living around data centers.
“'We don’t have capacity and we can’t get it from the utility — that means we’re going to have to come up with alternate answers to that problem,' said Dean Nelson, CEO of Cato Digital, speaking at Bisnow’s DICE East event last week at The Ritz-Carlton in Tysons, Virginia," according to Bisnow.
“Honestly, I don't see another answer in the short term or mid-term for us to be able to solve that problem other than local generation," Nelson added. "It’s suddenly feasible in multiple markets, including Northern Virginia.”
“You’re seeing utilities start to lock down on how much capacity they're going to give you at a campus, and you’re seeing them come to the table and having discussions around what you’re willing to do from an on-site generation standpoint to mitigate peak loads [on power grids],” said Stuart Lawrence, vice president for product innovation and sustainability for Stream Data Centers, speaking at DICE East. “They’re saying what can you guys do to help us out when those kinds of conditions hit?”
A few data centers have already gone off the grid, the article explains, but not entirely. They are supplementing their electrical input. Using self-generated electricity is a way to alleviate the strain on the power grid.
The data center industry believes this is a “welcomed development,” a solution to “maxed-out infrastructure". For data centers, it can be a win-win, yielding better rates and improved connection times, but for residents, it is one more way the data centers are damaging to the communities they inhabit.
The ways data centers would power their buildings are not necessarily environmentally friendly. The easiest solution is diesel generators that spout micropollutants. Breathing that in is a clear health concern, especially for at-risk populations. Clearly, it will not help property values.
They realize the difficulty they could face asking to run pollutants 24/7 or even sporadically near neighborhoods.
This is all according to Power Shortages Are Turning More Data Centers Into Their Own Utilities (bisnow.com)
What DOES "local generation" mean in a power crisis fueled by the data centers' need for power? There is no other currently available alternative - other than on-site diesel generators. Bisnow has finally published what Dominion Energy and the data center industry had been trying to keep quiet!
Remember citizens rising up in opposition to a waiver that the Virginia Dept of Environmental Quality had proposed to "allow" Data Centers throughout Loudoun, Prince William, and Fairfax permission to rely on their diesel generators for power, to relieve the stress on the electric grid during peak load times from March - July?
The Coalition absolutely remembers.
"Northern Virginia hosts the largest collection of data centers in the world. A recent report from the DEQ suggests that could put a strain on Virginia’s electric grid. The solution the DEQ proposed is to let the centers run their power generators more. Only problem is that could violate Virginia’s standards for air quality."
Could Northern Virginia's data center cause power problems? | wusa9.com
Consider the code maroon air quality alert (the highest level on the chart) we just had in the past week because of smoke from wildfires in Canada. Now imagine particulates from several thousand massive commercial diesel generators added to that hazardous air quality!
Maybe Prince William County should have a PSYCHEDELIC air quality code rating, for all the detached-from-reality
(And while Bisnow mentions greener forms of energy, some of the technology is not even available now but some imagined future. Others are woefully insufficient to power big data centers.)
It is clear that when Prince William considers allowing data centers into our neighborhoods and next to our parks (assuming we have a choice), we have to consider air pollution! Especially considering proximity. If wildfires in an adjacent country can lead to massive amounts of air pollution spilling down into Texas. Do you want generators spewing out from our backyards?
Here is what we are warning about, and no you are not tripping! This is where our board of supervisors is building data centers.
This picture with the white truck is of just one of the Villages Technology Park data center buildings under construction. That parcel was intended to be a town center. Instead, it's going to be 4 data center buildings - because of Ann Wheeler and her bullying leadership.
The pictures below show examples of the 100 ft tall 230kV transmission line required to provide power to this data center campus. These towers will run through neighborhoods every 300-600 feet.
The final picture below is a screenshot from a recent meeting with Dominion Energy of a possible route to feed the colossal power demands of Villages Tech Park, and also the 29/66 Technology Data Center complex now across the street.
We're not only going to have data centers sprinkled throughout our communities - we're going to have utility generation scattered throughout as well!
Do not let this power crisis become normalized. THIS IS NOT, AND MUST NOT BE NORMAL.
Given this emerging threat that we are facing to our power grid, it may be time to consider a Special Use Permit (SUP) required for data center approvals EVEN WITHIN the Data Center Overlay district.
What we are facing as a community, as a region, and as a state requires all-hands-on deck. We must face this challenge together. We need leadership that protects the people over the powerful.
Fire Ann Wheeler. Show her that the "hidden" money flowing into her re-election campaign from dark PAC money is no match for real Democracy.
Early voting is in progress NOW through June 17 at the following locations:
Early voting hours are:
"UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, Nothing is going to get better.
It’s not.” The Lorax
The Coalition to Protect Prince William County has endorsed Deshundra Jefferson, the primary candidate running against Ann Wheeler.
Note: This is a letter to the editor, and the opinions expressed are not that of the Coalition to Protect Prince William County.
Bristow Beat revised and summarized some paragraphs to protect the copyrights of publications quoted in the article.
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