This Map Reveals Data Centers in Your Backyard

Understanding the impact of infrastructure is crucial, and here’s how to uncover the significant energy consumers known as data centers in your vicinity.

When Oregon resident Isabelle Reksopuro learned of allegations that Google was acquiring public land to support its data centers within her home state, she initially approached the claims with skepticism. "There’s a lot of misinformation about data centers," she noted, adding that "Google has denied taking that land."

Reksopuro clarified that, technically, The Dalles, a city near the Washington state border, initiated efforts to reclaim the land, with Google being characterized as "just a big, unnamed power user." The city had, in fact, requested ownership of a 150-acre parcel within the Mount Hood National Forest, asserting a need for access to Mount Hood’s watershed to meet the municipal demands of its growing population, which stood at 16,010 as per the 2020 census. However, critics, including environmentalists, contend that the city's move aims to secure additional water resources for Google, whose expansive data center campus in The Dalles already consumes approximately one-third of the city’s water supply.

This local controversy spurred Reksopuro, a University of Washington student specializing in the intersection of technology and public policy, to investigate the broader community backlash against data center construction. Utilizing data compiled by Epoch AI and information extracted from data center-related legislation, she developed an interactive map designed to track AI policy globally. Reksopuro emphasized her intention for the map to be easily accessible: "I wanted it to be something that my younger sisters could play through and explore to understand what are the data centers in the area and what’s actually being done about it." Her goal was to foster informed opinions, "instead of like, through TikTok."

The map is engineered for autonomy, updating itself four times daily. "Once it does that, it will write a new summary, add it to the news feed, and populate it on the sidebar," she explained. "I wanted it to be self-updating, since I’m also a student."

Opposition to data centers is a rare issue that transcends partisan divides in America. Beyond their initial construction, data centers offer minimal permanent job opportunities and consume vast amounts of power, often leading to increased utility costs for local residents. Despite growing controversy, Reksopuro’s map highlights the non-universal nature of public and policy responses. For instance, Maine saw significant resistance, culminating in the passage of the first state-level moratorium on hyperscale data centers in April, though it was later vetoed by Gov. Janet Mills. In stark contrast, Texas is "a huge fan of data centers," as Reksopuro observed, having enacted tax exemptions for them. The Texas Tribune reports that the state provides data centers with over $1 billion in tax breaks annually.

While Reksopuro does not oppose data centers themselves, she argues that tech giants benefit from a lack of transparency surrounding their policies. "Right now, it’s this really opaque thing — and all of a sudden, there’s a facility," she stated. She believes that "if people knew about data centers beforehand, it would give them leverage. They would be able to negotiate: ask for job training programs, tax revenue, environmental monitoring, things to improve their community."