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Lowndes County to draft data‑center ordinance emphasizing closed‑loop water, noise limits and buffers
Summary
County staff told residents the commission has instructed the attorney to begin drafting a standalone data‑center ordinance focused on community protections — closed‑loop cooling, noise and lighting limits, buffer distances and third‑party hydrogeologic studies — and pledged transparency in the process.
County staff told residents that the Board of Commissioners has instructed the county attorney to draft a standalone ordinance that would regulate data centers in unincorporated Lowndes County.
"This conversation and this presentation is not meant to make a case for or against a data center," county manager Miss Dukes said during a post‑meeting presentation. She said the ordinance will prioritize community protections over industry interests and will be shared publicly in draft form for citizen review.
Staff said the draft ordinance will require closed‑loop cooling systems that do not discharge to the wastewater system and will require applicants to submit a third‑party hydrogeologic study estimating annual water use and a wastewater treatment plan before a certificate of occupancy is issued. "The county intends to require through the ordinance a closed loop system," Miss Dukes said, describing how closed‑loop systems recirculate water and reduce withdrawals from the aquifer.
The presentation identified additional regulatory tools under consideration: minimum buffer distances (staff cited an example request for 1,000 feet from residential structures, schools, hospitals, places of worship and parks), fully shielded exterior lighting with specific mounting heights, and noise thresholds intended not to extend beyond property lines (staff proposed limits such as 60 dBA daytime and 50 dBA nighttime at sensitive receivers). Staff also said routine generator testing would be restricted to weekdays between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. and that operators would bear the cost of required compliance testing.
County staff repeatedly emphasized the role of pre‑development studies. Miss Dukes said the county will require soil testing, site plans, wetland delineation where applicable and engineering verification to assess karst (limestone) sinkhole risk: "All of that can be put into the ordinance," she said.
Staff also addressed commonly raised concerns about secrecy, incentives and NDAs: Miss Dukes said no Lowndes County elected official, staff member or the county has signed an NDA related to the parcel in question and that the county does not intend to offer local tax abatements. She said state or federal incentives remain possible but are outside local control.
Next steps: staff will continue research, collect written questions from residents, work with the county attorney to draft ordinance language and share drafts publicly for comment. The commission reiterated that it will not consider a data‑center project in Lowndes County until an ordinance and accompanying processes are in place.
The post‑meeting presentation and Q&A concluded with staff offering to follow up on unanswered questions and to convene additional public meetings as drafts and studies become available.
