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Gates County workshop hears data-center briefing as residents and officials press for land-use protections
Summary
A technical briefing on data centers prompted Gates County leaders and residents to raise concerns about water, electricity, noise and long-term local benefits; officials said a moratorium and clearer land-use rules could buy time to craft standards and community-reinvestment agreements.
Joe Horace, a data/energy and infrastructure specialist and former town manager, told a Gates County workshop that ‘‘the data centers, they are coming,’’ and urged local leaders to prepare by deciding what size and type of development the county wants and by writing clear land-use and permitting rules.
Horace framed data centers as infrastructure-driven projects that prioritize power and connectivity and vary widely in scale. He cited national and regional counts, saying Virginia accounts for about 685 sites while North Carolina has roughly 113 data centers, of which he said 72 are operating and about 41 are planned. ‘‘They are really driven by power and productivity,’’ he said, adding that some centers use substantial water for cooling while others rely more on power and connectivity.
The p…
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