Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
Residents, environmental groups urge Sayreville to remove data centers from Hercules redevelopment plan
Loading...
Summary
Residents and environmental groups pressed the Sayreville council to remove data centers from the Hercules redevelopment plan, citing large water use, air and noise pollution risks and urging zoning changes and impact studies before permitting.
Community members and environmental advocates urged the Sayreville mayor and council to remove data centers as a permitted use in the Hercules redevelopment plan and to require stronger local safeguards.
Cassandra (resident) told the council the redevelopment brochure referenced proposed data-center uses and said the materials suggested very large water demands; she said a realty brochure cited “up to 4,600,000 gallons of fresh water is possible per day” for the development. Brooke Helmick, director of policy for the New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance, told the council many data centers run diesel backup generators that can sharply increase local nitrogen-oxide pollution and pointed to risks for asthma and longer-term health consequences. “This is really, really important for the folks that are going to be living around this facility,” Helmick said.
Taylor McFarland, conservation program manager for the Sierra Club’s New Jersey chapter, said experience in other states shows data centers’ large, ongoing demands for power and water can strain local systems and harm residential quality of life. McFarland said jurisdictions including Pemberton Township and Phillipsburg have moved to restrict or ban certain data-center uses and urged Sayreville to consider similar zoning and buffer requirements.
Speakers asked the council to pause permitting and remove data centers from the redevelopment plan until the borough can require comprehensive assessments — including acoustic and visual studies, quantified water-use and wastewater analysis, and limits on generator emissions. Suggested safeguards included restricted zoning, minimum distance buffers from residential areas, and performance standards for noise and water use.
Council members did not adopt a motion on the redevelopment plan at the meeting; several councilors acknowledged they had received residents’ materials and said staff and council would review the recommendations and follow up. The Sierra Club volunteer offered to provide reports and model ordinance language to the borough.
Next steps: residents asked the council to report back after staff review and to work with environmental groups on draft safeguards before any land-use approvals are finalized.
