An Oct. 27 workshop included presentations from Upstate Forever, Catawba Riverkeepers and Duke Energy highlighting uncertainties about water use, on‑site power, and utility capacity for data centers. Planning staff said amendments and another workshop were planned and recommended extending the moratorium on data center approvals through April 30, 2027.

The commission recommended adding a definition for 'data center' and allowing the use by right in the I-1 district; commissioners asked questions about water use, available industrial land and downstream regulation, and a resident voiced concern about water resources.

Citing the uproar in New Brunswick over a planned 23-acre data center, council voted to have the borough attorney explore drafting an ordinance that would prohibit data-center development as a permitted use in Milltown; councilors cited concerns about energy, water use, noise, and community fit.

A presenter described small, medium and hyperscale data centers, contrasting high-water evaporative cooling and closed-loop designs; planning staff recommended updating the High Impact Development Ordinance to classify data centers and consider permitting conditions in line with a pending state bill (Senate Bill 730).

Commissioners and township attorney reviewed a lengthy 'version 1' sample ordinance addressing data centers: definitions, sensitive land uses, setbacks, sound standards (55 dBA day / 45 dBA night), monitoring, water- and energy-use standards, and decommissioning. Staff will invite technical experts and return with refined language.

Texas Pauses Data Center Approvals Amidst Scrutiny and Incentive Review Texas has implemented a freeze on approvals for data center projects statewide and intends to phase out financial incentives for the industry, representing a change in direction from recent strategies designed to establish the state as a hub for artificial intelligence infrastructure. Governor Greg Abbott

Candidates in the Wisconsin Assembly District 72 forum debated large 'hyperscale' data centers — Christine Maltese urged strict local review and answers on water and electricity use, while Scott Krug pointed to state bills and local conditional-use tools and said the community can say 'no' to incomplete proposals.

From conservation to sharing to storage, farmers, fisheries, and cities are finding solutions through a Yakima Basin plan amid Washington’s fourth consecutive year of drought.

Hawthorne adopted Interim Ordinance U-2271 to pause establishment or expansion of data center uses while staff study water use, noise and other community impacts. The council recorded 35 written communications and a mix of in-person comments before voting to adopt the moratorium.

Public commenters told commissioners they want explicit limits in negotiation documents for the proposed Bluestem data center, warning about PFAS use in immersion cooling, high water consumption for some cooling types and long-term tax and electricity costs under Kansas Senate Bill 98.

Texas officials are promising tougher enforcement on data centers, but the existing law may offer limited leverage over the industry that has largely failed to report its water use.

Staff recommended requiring applicant water-use and electrical-grid studies and third-party reviews; commissioners asked staff to ensure proposed standards prevent negative impacts on municipal flows and adjacent customers.

The De Pere Planning Commission voted to adopt a one-year citywide moratorium on new data-center proposals to allow time for study of infrastructure, water use and zoning; staff will forward a resolution and public hearing to the Common Council as required.

Planning and economic development staff described five data center types (edge to hyperscale), possible locations under current UDO (industrial zones and Section 36), and outlined major impacts: heavy electricity demand, large water use for evaporative cooling, wastewater pretreatment concerns, noise and decommissioning risks.