Disclaimer – this is not an exhaustive list of resources. We hope to continue adding helpful links to this page.
Reports and Studies
- Report to the Governor and the General Assembly of Virginia, from the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) Study, 2024.
- This study was commissioned by the Virginia General Assembly in spring 2024 after legislators rejected all proposed legislation proposals to reform the data center industry.
- Making AI Less “Thirsty”: Uncovering and Addressing the Secret Water Footprint of AI Models
- a study on data center water usage by Pengfei Li, Jianyi Yang, Mohammad A. Islam, Shaolei Ren
- The Unpaid Toll: Quantifying the Public Health Impact of AI
- A study on the air pollution effects of data center by Yuelin Han, Zhifeng Wu, Pengfei Li, Adam Wierman, Shaolei Ren.
- Extracting Profits from the Public: How Utility Ratepayers Are Paying for Big Tech’s Power, March 5, 2025.
- A study of ratepayer impacts of data centers by Harvard Law School
- Data centers drive buildout of gas power plants and pipelines in the Southeast, January 29, 2025.
- A study by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA)
- Issued Air Permits for Data Centers, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
- A searchable database of air permits issued by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality for data centers, including procedural reports and guidelines
Overview and Impacts: Webinars
- The Local Impact of Data Centers with Julie Bolthouse, Piedmont Environmental Council land use director
- A one-hour webinar presented by the Ohio State University Center for Urban and Regional Affairs. January 24, 2025
- Unpaid Toll: The Health Impacts of Data Centers
- A 90-minute webinar by Nature Forward on unmitigated public health impact of data centers with Shaolei Ren. February 25, 2025
- AI consumes a lot of water — but why?
- A TED talk on Data Center water usage with Shaolei Ren. October 2024
- Your Hour With APA Virginia: Planning for the Infrastructure of the Digital Age
- A webinar presented by Piedmont Environmental Council Land Use Director Julie Bolthouse. Virginia chapter of the American Planning Association, August 28, 2023.
Articles of Interest for Communities & Locality/Municipality
Taxes and Tax Revenue
- Data Center Tax Revenue Can Be Hard to Predict – Fauquier Times, Oct. 25, 2022
- City Officials Caught Off Guard as Bank Tenant Sidesteps Millions in Data Center Taxes – Potomac Local News | May 5, 2025.
- Secret data center tenant in Manassas not subject to business property taxes – Inside NoVA | May 7, 2025
- Guest Opinon: Banking on data center tax revenue? Wait before cashing that check | Culpeper Times — Opinion | insidenova.com – Culpeper Times, March 18, 2025
- Prince William County spending nearly $500K to fight data center lawsuits – Prince William Times, Dec. 3, 2024.
Power Shortages Impacting the Industry
- Power Shortages Can Lead to “Zombie Data Centers” – Business Insider, Oct. 23, 2025.
- Data Centers Face Seven-Year Wait for Power – Bloomberg, Aug. 29, 2024 [requires a subscription to view]
Other Topics of Interest
Realities of Jobs Creation: The AI Data-Center Boom Is a Job-Creation Bust – The Wall Street Journal, Feb. 25, 2025 [requires a subscription to view]
The Electrical Grid: How Tariffs Could Shock America’s Power System – The Wall Street Journal, Feb. 20, 2025 [requires a subscription to view]
Water Supply: The surging demand for data is guzzling Virginia’s water – Grist, May 8, 2024.
Air Quality: How Memphis became a battleground over Elon Musk’s xAI supercomputer – NPR, Sept. 11, 2024.
Noise & Visual Impacts: Data centers are changing the landscape. Here’s how they may affect rural Virginia – Cardinal News, March 12, 2025.
Importance of Local Zoning: Northern Virginia has more data centers than anywhere else in the world. Here’s its advice for Southside | Cardinal News, March 17, 2025.
Data Center as Bad Actors: How Memphis became a battleground over Elon Musk’s xAI supercomputer – NPR, Sept. 11, 2024.
Latest News Stories
How a Data Center Derailed $240,000 for Affordable Housing in Rural Maine
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Daily Yonder
(05/08/26)
In Midcoast Maine, Wiscasset’s handling of a prospective data center ended with the community losing nearly a quarter of a million dollars of federal funding earmarked for housing. All of this happened without a data center ever breaking ground. As the data center rush unfolds in small towns, the story is not only about what gets built, but also about what doesn’t.
A major watchdog says data centers are wreaking havoc on North America’s power grid
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Business Insider
(05/08/26)
Data centers are increasing the risk of power outages and blackouts — and electric grid operators aren’t prepared to handle it. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation — the top grid oversight agency for the US, Canada, and parts of Mexico — issued a rare alert on Monday, urging operators to address new risks posed by the deluge of data centers connecting to the grid.
Henrico data center plans to add 1,000 acres, create sprawling network
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Richmond Times-Dispatch
(05/08/26)
A large data center in eastern Henrico County plans to expand its operations again. Quality Technology Services has submitted plans to build two more data center campuses and add 1,000 acres to its footprint, creating a sprawling network of digital warehouses.
AI Is Distorting Practically Everything About the Economy
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The Wall Street Journal
(05/07/26)
Until recently, artificial intelligence was a welcome tailwind for U.S. growth. We’re beyond that now. AI is more like a hurricane-strength weather system making itself felt across the entire economy. It is distorting the stock market, profits, the speed and composition of economic growth, trade and even our moods—especially about the job market.
Digital Gateway’s 100-plus landowners remain in limbo as project hangs by a thread
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Fauquier Times
(05/07/26)
In the meantime, some landowners are suing to get out of the deal. Others say they are happy the project seems doomed, and the residents whose legal challenge nearly killed it are vowing to keep fighting.
Dominion announces plans for new 3-gigawatt gas plant in Cumberland County
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Virginia Mercury
(05/07/26)
Dominion Energy is aiming to expand their portfolio of energy sources in Virginia with a massive 3,000 megawatt (3 gigawatts) combined cycle natural gas plant in Cumberland County. Dominion’s recent projections show that in order to meet the growing energy demands in the region, the company will have to build an estimated six natural gas plants, on top of other renewable energy sources, over the next 20 years.
‘Data centers are coming’: Another data center proposal takes shape in Hanover
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WRIC
(05/06/26)
“It’s too fast,” MaGee said. “It’s like, ‘The data centers are coming, the data centers are coming’ — like it’s inevitable. Well, that doesn’t work for me, and that doesn’t work for my friends, and that doesn’t work for the people who live here.”
Environmentalists urge Virginia lawmakers to get rid of data center tax incentive
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29 News
(05/06/26)
“The question is, should we be giving $2 billion to the five or six largest corporations in the world to incentivize their purchase of equipment outside the state, right? I think we feel pretty strongly that it’s a bad choice,” Miller said.
Digital Gateway’s 100-plus landowners remain in limbo as project hangs by a thread
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Prince William Times
(05/06/26)
With just three hours until a court deadline last Thursday, April 30, QTS, the other data center company, made a last-ditch attempt to keep the project alive. QTS asked the Virginia Supreme Court to reverse earlier court rulings that voided the Digital Gateway rezonings due to insufficient public notice.
Exclusive: Local Opposition to Data Centers Explodes in 2026
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Heatmap
(05/06/26)
At least 20 proposed data center projects were canceled after local pushback during the first three months of 2026, smashing a record set only in the previous quarter… These canceled projects accounted for more than $41.7 billion in investment and represented at least 3.5 gigawatts of electricity demand.
Proposed zoning rewrite sparks data center questions in Franklin County
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WDBJ
(05/05/26)
Franklin County is considering a sweeping rewrite of its zoning ordinance, and one proposal in the 400-plus-page draft would change rules for agricultural animals such as chickens and bees.
But some residents say the larger stakes may be elsewhere.
Fighting Back Against Data Center Sprawl
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Blue Dot Living
(05/05/26)
Concerned citizens across the country are pushing back against the data centers that have begun to dot their communities. These advocates are seeing some success: $64 billion of data center projects have been blocked or delayed due to local, bipartisan activism, according to the watchdog group Data Center Watch, which also noted at least 124 activist groups have formed across 24 states.
Data Centers Have a PFAS Problem
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Sierra Club
(05/05/26)
These gases can escape into the air, where they accelerate climate change. Some PFAS gases used in cooling of data centers have global warming potential that is thousands of times higher than CO2’s.
Spanberger’s data center position is the test of her affordability message
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Virginia Mercury
(05/05/26)
The governor says data centers should pay their fair share. The Senate has proposed the largest single mechanism for making them pay. She defers to negotiators on it. Her own party’s legislative leaders passed cost-shift bills. She weakened the cost-shift language.
Permit sought for Spotsylvania data center
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Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star
(05/05/26)
Another data center development is being sought in Spotsylvania, the first since the county established new data center regulations. McLean-based RCK Digital Crossroads LLC is proposing the Crossroads Technical Campus data center development in the Lee Hill District.
Data centers, GRTC fares dominate forum with Richmond lawmakers
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The Richmonder
(05/05/26)
Richmond-area General Assembly members got an earful Monday night from constituents concerned about the financial and environmental impacts of data centers. “I know every time I open a Dominion bill, I literally squeeze my hand,” said Harry Watkins, who moderated the post-legislative session town hall with local delegates and senators.
Campbell County requires special use permits for data centers after unanimous board vote
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ABC 13 News
(05/05/26)
The board of supervisors in Campbell County took a short time to decide to require special use permits for data centers, and it means community members and board members will have a say before projects move forward.
Is King George court case a bellwether for data center fight?
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Richmond Times-Dispatch
(05/04/26)
But now, the tiny county in rural Tidewater is locked in a legal battle with the tech giant that could be a bellwether for a high-stakes standoff between state legislators and the data center industry over a state sales tax exemption that has helped make Virginia the global center of the industry.
Local, state studies reach different conclusions on Sterling data center emissions
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Loudoun Times-Mirror
(05/04/26)
“So this isn’t a case of one analysis being right and the other being wrong,” [Cork] said. “I think both tell us something true, which is even at observed operating levels, this facility is associated with measurable health impacts on Loudoun communities.”
Legal battle over massive data center campus continues after last-minute appeal
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WJLA-ABC7News
(05/03/26)
Like many others who have moved out to Prince William County, near Manassas National Battlefield Park, Elena Schlossberg enjoys the serenity while out walking on the mild, sunny day. She is the executive director for the Coalition to Protect Prince William County and said it has been a hard-fought two-plus years to block the construction of data centers here.
Rural America Is Getting Blindsided by Something New
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The New York Times
(05/02/26)
Rural America has long been where the rest of the country sends what it doesn’t want nearby: prisons, power plants, landfills. These days, two more intrusions have been added to the list: immigrant detention centers and data centers.
To power the new digital economy, Virginia moved the dead
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The Hill
(05/02/26)
At 17, I imagined computers expanding opportunity, not replacing people. I never imagined that the infrastructure powering the internet might one day displace my ancestors’ graves. But that is the quiet reality unfolding in southern Virginia.
Virginia’s data center tax break is costing the state more than $1 billion a year
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WUSA 9
(05/02/26)
A new report estimates hundreds of millions in lost school funding as Richmond debates whether to roll back one of the most generous tax exemptions in the country
Peterson Co. plots three-building data center campus in Leesburg, Virginia
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Data Center Dynamics
(05/01/26)
Located between East Market Street and Potomac Station Drive, up to seven buildings could be developed across more than 100 acres. The development would include three two-story data centers totaling 600,000 sq ft (55,740 sqm) and four industrial buildings spanning 275,000 sq ft (25,550 sqm). According to the application, the project would impact approximately one acre of wetlands and 2,464 linear feet of stream channels.
AI data centers, already harmful, appear to be creating their own microclimates
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SF Gate
(05/01/26)
As global temperatures rise, data centers for artificial intelligence are creating “heat islands” that could have significant impacts on communities and their surrounding environments in the years to come, a March 2026 study shows, raising alarm among international researchers.
