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Hundreds of Escambia County residents urge commissioners to ban AI/data centers, citing water, power and health concerns
Summary
At a packed public forum, residents and community groups urged the Escambia County Board of County Commissioners to ban AI and large data centers, citing potential strain on water and power systems, noise and health impacts, and limited long‑term jobs; county staff said there were no active negotiations and commissioners asked staff to draft ordinance language.
A standing‑room crowd at the Gary Sanzen public forum on June 16 pressed Escambia County commissioners to ban AI and other large data centers, arguing the facilities would drain water and power, create noise and light pollution, and produce limited local employment.
"We are often told these projects create jobs. The reality is that while construction may create temporary work, data centers typically employ relatively few people once they’re operational," said Christie Rosen, an Escambia County resident and co‑founder of the local Indivisible chapter. She asked the board to "say no to data centers and yes to sustainable economic development." (Christie Rosen, public commenter.)
Speakers catalogued environmental and public‑health concerns from other localities and cited studies and journalistic investigations they said show high water use and utility impacts. "A large data center can easily use up to 5,000,000 gallons of water per day," a speaker told the board, while others described noise, heat‑island effects and potential chemical runoff from cooling systems.
Residents also brought organized support: Brandy Johnson said a petition opposing data centers had gathered roughly 5,396 signatures, and several speakers noted similar bans or moratoria enacted by neighboring counties.
Florida West economic‑development director Chris Platais addressed the forum and said Florida West was not in active negotiations to recruit a data center to Escambia County and that the county’s current infrastructure is not sized to host "hyperscale" facilities. He also said recent state rules require very large energy users to pay for their own infrastructure, which could limit impacts on ratepayers.
Commissioners and staff framed next steps as procedural. Board members described two options discussed at the meeting: directing staff to schedule a public hearing on a moratorium or pursuing an ordinance that would ban data centers. County counsel said she would prepare draft language; County Attorney Allison (on the dais) said she would bring an ordinance draft for the board’s July 23 meeting and, if the board agreed, schedule a public hearing for August 6.
Board members asked for more technical detail from utilities and county staff on water usage, power requirements and noise mitigation that any proposal would require. Several residents pressed for a permanent ban rather than a temporary pause or study.
The forum moved directly into the regular meeting; commissioners took several routine items and then set a path to consider a data‑center ordinance. The county did not vote to approve or deny any data‑center project at the June 16 meeting.
The board is expected to receive draft ordinance language at its July 23 meeting and could schedule a public hearing in August. Until then, no formal application or incentive package for a data center was reported as pending before the county.
