County staff press presenters on inspections, water reuse and who pays if a data center is abandoned
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Summary
Baltimore County inspectors asked trade and Tech Council speakers about inspection access on large, muddy sites, costs and feasibility of reclaimed‑water cooling, and whether counties can require decommissioning or recovery if a facility shuts down; the Tech Council said Frederick County has relied on leases and community‑benefits processes rather than statutory decommissioning requirements.
Brady Locker, an environmental department staff member for Baltimore County, asked whether local jurisdictions have protections if a data center "goes out of business or is abandoned" and whether counties can require decommissioning similar to solar projects. "Could you talk about what, if any, protections local jurisdictions have in place if a data center goes out of business or is abandoned?" Locker asked.
Kelly Schultz, CEO of the Maryland Tech Council, answered that in Frederick County there has not been a monetary local investment that would require a statutory decommissioning process, and she did not identify a written county decommissioning requirement. "I don't know if there's been anything specific in writing that the counties have done in order to be able to earn back from those developments," Schultz said, and noted that many large users lease facilities — citing leases "between 15 and 20 year[s]" as an example — rather than owning them outright.
An inspections official (Pete) asked about enforcement and whether inspectors could receive training for data‑center components. Rico Alba Carries of IBEW replied that much of the work is standard electrical practice but that scale and site access can complicate inspections. "The scale of the site can create some challenges, but outside of that, nothing groundbreaking," he said, noting that electrical work still follows NEC and OSHA rules.
County staff raised questions about water‑use claims and cost comparisons for different cooling methods. Schultz said some sites tie into wastewater‑treatment plants and use closed‑loop reclaimed‑water systems, and offered to forward cited technical studies such as Berkeley Lab analyses. She also offered follow‑up technical briefings and links to the Tech Council’s data‑center alliance resources.
Why it matters: Baltimore County staff are evaluating permitting, inspection capacity and long‑term fiscal risk. The briefing left open whether statutory protections (decommissioning bonds or explicit lease‑back requirements) should be added to county standards.
What to follow up: County staff requested cited studies and cost analyses comparing air cooling, recycled water and other methods; the Tech Council offered to provide those resources.