DeKalb residents push back on plans to put data center regulations in place

Some DeKalb County residents are making it clear they do not want data centers in their backyard.

County leaders are weighing new rules that would limit where these facilities can go and how they operate.

At Tuesday's county commission meeting, an amendment was put forth to define data centers and impose regulations on them.

The county has received three applications from developers, and Tuesday's proposal was an effort to move the process along.

However, the message from residents in attendance was clear in their opposition.

"Not one person has come up here in favor of this text amendment. We do not want data centers in DeKalb County," Gina Mangham told the commission.

Mangham is a resident of Districts 5 and 7 and leads what she calls the Citizens Coalition, an organized group of over 100 people who are opposed to DeKalb County's efforts to build data centers.

The coalition packed the meeting and extended the public comment section by 10 minutes, many in matching shirts that read "no data centers."

They raised concerns about pollution, water use, noise, and whether the power demand could eventually drive up utility bills.

They even brought a warning from outside Georgia.

KeShaun Pearson traveled from Memphis to address the DeKalb County leaders.

He co-founded the group Memphis Community Against Pollution and travels the country to lobby against data centers, personally having experienced the harms he says they can bring.

He has referenced three data centers in and around Memphis that he says he caused air pollution, unwanted noise, and temperature effects.

"Those folks have experienced it all," Pearson told CBS News Atlanta, "They are having the noise pollution, they are also beginning to feel some of the weather-related heat, so while it's still in the midst of being studied, folks are already talking about what they are experiencing."

The possible temperature effects were also addressed by commissioners as a concern, specifically Edward Terry of District 6.

Terry referenced studies conducted by Arizona State University and Cambridge University, which both found temperatures in nearby radii of data centers increased from nearly 1 to 4%.

He said in the coming meetings, he will propose a resolution to conduct a third-party environmental health study and another to fund it.

District 4 Commissoner Chakira Johnson also called for more transparency in the defining and regulating process.

"Knowing that if an application were to come forward, all of these things need to be looked at," said Johnson, "and I don't think we've made it clear to the public what that would look like."

She said she understands the public's concerns, and in order for them to deny an application, a definition needs to be in place first.

However, opponents still do not believe that it is the right move.

"I believe the proposal to define a data center falls short of what the real necessary move is," said Pearson, "and that's to maintain a moratorium until there is a precedent set that puts people first."

DeKalb County leaders have already put a moratorium in place, pausing new applications and expansions through Sept. 30.

No vote was made on Tuesday's amendment.

It has been deferred to Aug. 11, where another public comment section will be held.