Skip to main content
CleanPowerDaily
Back to Home

In the Trenches: Data Center Moratoriums Sweep Three States as Solar and Battery Fights Flare From Texas to New England

7 min read
In the Trenches: Data Center Moratoriums Sweep Three States as Solar and Battery Fights Flare From Texas to New England

In what may be the clearest signal yet that data center opposition is becoming a nationwide movement, communities in Colorado, Ohio, and Pennsylvania this week moved to block or regulate data center development, with nearly unanimous public opposition in one county and a proposed yearlong construction moratorium in another. The pushback came alongside a busy week for solar siting disputes stretching from Connecticut to California, a landmark state override of local zoning in Delaware's offshore wind fight, and continued fallout from last year's Moss Landing battery fire shaping a new storage proposal in California.

Data Center Disputes

The most dramatic confrontation unfolded in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, where nearly 100 residents submitted public comments to the Board of Commissioners on a proposed ordinance to regulate data center development — and all but one were opposed. "We're a historic and varied economy. To lay out a red carpet for data centers, which will take more than they will give, is not the answer," resident Natasha DiStacio told commissioners, according to the Chambersburg Public Opinion. The proposed ordinance, which would apply to municipalities without their own zoning rules, includes requirements for setbacks, noise levels, on-site solar power, and environmental impact studies. Residents cited concerns about strain on the power grid, potential water contamination, and the pace of industrial development in the region.

In Ohio, the city of Sunbury announced it will consider a moratorium on data center development after weeks of resident pushback against a proposed $2 billion Amazon Data Services campus. Mayor Joe St. John made the announcement during a State of the City presentation on March 25, though he did not specify the moratorium's duration or when it would be introduced to City Council, the Columbus Dispatch reported. The move follows organized opposition from residents who have been fighting the Amazon proposal for weeks.

Denver is taking an even more aggressive posture. City Council members proposed a yearlong moratorium on all new data center construction and development, according to Colorado Politics. The proposal would freeze new projects across the city while officials study the impacts of the rapidly growing industry.

Meanwhile, in Indianapolis, community opposition was not enough to stop a project from advancing. The Metropolitan Development Commission approved rezoning for a controversial data center in the Martindale-Brightwood neighborhood despite months of community protest and public meetings, WFYI reported. The approval marks a setback for residents who had organized sustained opposition to the project.

Solar Siting Battles

Solar opposition this week spanned at least five states, with fights ranging from small rural installations to utility-scale projects of 200 megawatts or more.

In Robertson County, Texas, residents in the town of Franklin are protesting the proposed 200-megawatt Buffalo Meadow Energy Center and urging county leaders to reconsider their approval of the project, according to KXXV. The large-scale project has galvanized local opposition in the rural community, though specific concerns were not detailed in initial reports.

Connecticut's solar siting debate escalated significantly when residents and officials from East Windsor and Ellington brought their opposition directly to Governor Ned Lamont during a 90-minute tour of solar farms built on farmland. The visit, reported by the Connecticut Post, represents a notable escalation in the state's growing tensions over the conversion of agricultural land to solar energy production — bringing what has traditionally been a local zoning fight to the governor's doorstep.

A similar farmland-versus-solar dynamic is playing out in Maryland, where a solar farm near Berlin is advancing despite opposition from Worcester County Commissioners. The project is proceeding under state authority, effectively overriding local objections, according to Ocean City Today. The situation echoes a broader tension emerging in multiple states over whether local governments or state agencies should have final say over energy project siting.

In Plano, Illinois, the proposed Plano Skies solar project drew a split reception at a City Council meeting, with labor unions voicing support for the construction jobs it would bring while residents raised concerns about the project's impacts, WSPY News reported. The divided response highlights how solar projects can pit economic development interests against neighborhood concerns within the same community.

In Northern California, neighbors in the rural community of Manton are raising strong opposition to an already-approved 25-acre solar project along Battle Creek Bottom Road. Residents told Action News Now that the project simply doesn't belong in their community, though the project has already received approval and opponents may have limited avenues to block it.

Wind Energy Pushback

A landmark legal decision in Delaware this week underscored the growing tension between state energy goals and local land-use authority. The Chancery Court reaffirmed that zoning authority ultimately belongs to the General Assembly, upholding the state's decision to override Sussex County's zoning denial of a substation needed for US Wind's offshore wind project. It was the first time in modern Delaware history that the state overruled a county on a land-use decision, Delaware Live reported. The ruling could set a precedent for how states navigate local opposition to energy infrastructure deemed critical to meeting statewide goals.

The Delaware case stands in contrast to Texas, where political opposition has successfully blocked offshore wind development despite the state leading the nation in land-based wind energy capacity. As Mother Jones reported, the disconnect between Texas's onshore wind dominance and its absence of offshore turbines is largely a story of political resistance rather than technical or economic barriers.

Closer to the ground, a proposed wind turbine project has reignited a contentious zoning debate in Crystal Township, Michigan. The community is divided over how — or whether — to regulate wind energy development, with the project rekindling long-simmering disagreements over local land-use controls, according to the Daily News.

Battery Storage Concerns

The shadow of the Moss Landing battery fire, which occurred roughly a year ago, loomed large this week over a proposed new battery energy storage plant outside Watsonville, California. Proponents say the new facility would incorporate safety improvements over the Moss Landing design, but residents in the area remain skeptical, Lookout Santa Cruz reported. The Moss Landing fire, which forced evacuations and raised national questions about lithium-ion battery safety, has become a touchstone for communities across the country facing similar proposals.

On the opposite coast, the town of Wendell, Massachusetts, is marking four years of a Home Rule battle with the state over who has the authority to regulate Battery Energy Storage Systems. The town has waged a sustained legal and political fight for local control over BESS siting, positioning itself as a test case for municipalities seeking to assert authority over energy storage projects that the state may want to fast-track, according to the Greenfield Recorder. Wendell's fight has implications well beyond its borders, as other New England communities watch the outcome closely.

What to Watch

  • Sunbury, Ohio: City Council is expected to take up a proposed moratorium on data center development, including the $2 billion Amazon Data Services campus, though no specific date has been announced. Columbus Dispatch
  • Denver, Colorado: City Council will vote on a proposed yearlong moratorium on new data center construction. The outcome could influence other cities weighing similar measures. Colorado Politics
  • Franklin County, Pennsylvania: Commissioners are expected to continue deliberations on their proposed ordinance regulating data centers in non-zoning municipalities, following the overwhelmingly negative public comment period. Chambersburg Public Opinion

Closing Analysis

Two patterns stand out from this week's developments. First, data centers have emerged as the newest — and in some ways most potent — flashpoint in community opposition to large-scale development, with moratoriums proposed or under consideration in at least three jurisdictions simultaneously. The concerns driving data center opposition — power grid strain, water use, and the pace of industrial change — echo many of the same anxieties that have fueled resistance to renewable energy projects, suggesting the two movements may increasingly converge. Second, the question of who gets the final say on energy infrastructure siting — state governments or local communities — surfaced in at least four stories this week, from Delaware's unprecedented zoning override to Maryland's state-authorized solar farm to Wendell's four-year Home Rule fight. As states push to meet energy demand and climate targets, that tension between state authority and local control shows no signs of easing.