Environment
A Bitcoin mine came to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and Dafter Township isn’t happy
The mine’s computers emitted a loud, persistent hum that has, for the time being, been silenced by litigation.
Controversial data center moves forward in eastern North Dakota
Local leaders in North Dakota pushed forward with a planned data center development this week after contentious public hearings.
Google expands data center investment in Virginia, doesn’t share site specifics
Considered the data center capital of the world, Virginia will see more of big tech’s energy- and water-intensive facilities.
Innovative mapping tool reveals hidden wetlands and enhances conservation efforts
An AI-powered model aids states and countries in planning and restoration priorities.
Florida enlists robot bunnies to manage invasive pythons
To track down and remove invasive Burmese pythons, the South Florida Water Management District is turning to toy rabbits to bait the snakes.
After last Chesapeake Bay cleanup plan fell short, new proposal aims to be flexible, data-driven
Draft released last week still a work in progress; advocates worry it leaves too much open-ended, as cuts to federal programs loom.
Environmentalists say they’re cautious to adopt AI into their work
The decision to use newer tech tools, like AI models, which require physical infrastructure and large amounts of energy, water and other resources, isn’t a straightforward one for those interested in conservation, one expert says.
Report highlights community pushback stalling $64 billion in data center development nationwide
In Virginia, the globe’s largest concentration of data centers, and nationally, local opposition has coalesced into a powerful, bipartisan force.
Data centers defend environmental record amid AI push
Several states are worried about the power and water impacts of the centers needed to power the technology. But the industry moved to assure those concerned that they have it under control.
As demand for AI rises, so do power thirsty data centers
As data centers are developed in new communities across the country, residents and their state legislators see a mix of financial benefits with energy and environmental challenges.
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Public health risks of urban wildfire smoke prompt push for more monitoring
In February, nearly a dozen lawmakers from California called on the EPA to create a task force of local and federal authorities to better monitor what’s in the air and inform the public.
Washington governor orders team to study data centers’ impact on energy use, job creation and tax revenue
Data centers receive some of Washington’s largest corporate tax breaks and require enormous amounts of electricity, a need that is only expected to grow with increasing reliance on artificial intelligence.
Feds offer new data, research to refresh states’ water woes
A new report and data tool from the U.S. Geological Survey can help policymakers better understand where water supply risks exist in the U.S. to inform efforts to better manage the critical resource.
As climate change intensifies, Arizona bill would bar ‘geoengineering’ to combat it
The emerging field has caused fierce debate among scientists, some of whom see it as a way to combat people’s impact on the planet, while others see it as another way to create climate chaos.
As data center boom continues, Va. legislators broach new regulations
A bipartisan coalition of Virginia lawmakers seeks to balance economic growth with energy fairness and environmental protections.
Effort to block Reno data center offers glimpse of increasingly thorny issue in Nevada
Data centers are “unique in their impact to residential communities, the electric grid, and natural resources use, and therefore need to be considered under an ordinance that caters to their unique impacts,” say critics of Reno’s approval process.
AI air pollution takes deadly health toll
COMMENTARY | Air pollution from AI is expected to result in as many as 1,300 premature deaths a year by 2030 in the United States, researchers say.
Can you improve indoor air quality? These Utahns let sensors track their every move
Reaching for Air: Four Utahns installed sensors built by Columbia University’s Brown Institute in their homes. Here’s what they found.
Under pressure from the SCC, Dominion reveals the true cost of data centers
COMMENTARY | With state leaders avidly chasing more data centers in the name of economic development, ordinary Virginians are left to watch the assault on their energy supply, their water and their environment.
Data centers, which require massive amounts of energy and few jobs, have downsides for Alaska
Gov. Mike Dunleavy has invited big tech companies, including affiliates of Microsoft, Facebook and Amazon, to build data centers in Alaska.
