Another fast-growing Charlotte suburb OKs data center pause — this time for a year
As a Waxhaw mother approached the stand at the town’s commissioners meeting Tuesday, she admitted she was nervous, but she showed up for something bigger than herself.
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Courtney Moneymaker’s children, ages 3 and 11, could face the possibility of polluted air and water, she claimed, if Waxhaw did not take action on an issue of growing public concern: data centers. Moneymaker spoke in favor of Waxhaw’s 12-month data center moratorium, prepped with posters that read “People, Clean Air, Water > Data Center” and “Just Say No To Data Center.”
At Tuesday’s meeting, 11 people voiced their distaste for data centers and fought for a preventative measure against them. The public’s concerns addressed the increased environmental pressures and decreased quality of life that would result from a data center in the Charlotte suburb. The moratorium passed without opposition.
With this decision, Waxhaw becomes the latest local government to pass a data center moratorium, joining a list including the city of Charlotte, with a 150-day ban; Rowan County, with a one-year ban; and York County, with a nine-month ban.
Earlier that day, Moneymaker drove back from Chimney Rock, one of the many areas in western North Carolina decimated by Hurricane Helene.
“To see the devastation and destruction that water can cause was eye-opening. I just don’t want to see the devastation and destruction that the lack of water is going to cause,” she said.
Waxhaw’s data moratorium is a “proactive and preemptive” measure, said Mayor Robert Murray III said. No centers have been proposed yet, so the temporary ban will give officials time to develop the law. The moratorium will be in effect until August 10, 2027.
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Large data centers can consume up to 5 million gallons of water per day, according to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute. This is comparable to the water use of a town with 10,000 to 50,000 people. Waxhaw is a fast-growing town with a population that’s spiked from almost 10,000 to more than 23,000 in the last 15 years.
Like people in other communities, attendees raised red flags about the climate concerns. Carolyn Balcom spoke about elevated temperatures from heat emitted by data centers. While studies on data centers are young, she said, they show a clear environmental impact. Ben Levinson cited worsened air quality and visibility due to smog.
“The time of action is now,” he said. “Because when a data center comes it will already be too late.”
Having a data center could also disrupt the historic feel of Waxhaw, said James Withrow. Along the railroad of downtown Waxhaw sits antique shops, locally owned restaurants and architecture that preserves the town’s character.
In its discussion of the law, the board will also look at an all out ban, Murray III said. But there is a hold up: state law currently prevents the town from amending the relevant piece of code, Mayor Pro Tem Susanna Wedra added.
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