Power, water and enforcement questions dominate technical concerns about proposed data centers

Technical concerns featured prominently at the Aug. 27 meeting: speakers urged the county to require engineering letters, timelines for electricity, firm water-use limits and binding enforcement terms.

Kyle Lindenmuth, a power-industry professional, told the meeting that Dominion and the State Corporation Commission (cases PUR202600011 and PUR2026-00009) have projects in the transmission queue and that applicants can expect long waits for service. “There's such an inundation of data centers in the Dominion system that they have a backlog that is currently 15 years long,” he said, arguing that any near-term revenue projections should be tempered by realistic electricity timelines.

On enforcement, staff noted recent state action expanding DEQ authority and fines for noncompliance with environmental standards, but said court remedies may be required to stop ongoing activity. “Fines do not necessarily mean that the data center shuts down,” a resident observed, noting examples where operators paid penalties and continued to operate. Staff said the county would rely on its code enforcement tools and may need judicial relief in some cases; they also said the county will require applicants to submit the technical studies the state and county law require.