- Opposition to data centers continues to grow in the US
- Gallup poll finds people would rather have a nuclear plant in their area than a data center
- Environmental concerns, noise pollution and additional costs are the main concerns
Most Americans would oppose building new data centers in their local area, and many would even prefer new nuclear power facilities, new data claims.
A Gallup poll found that more than seven in 10 (71%) Americans oppose building data centers for AI nearby and nearly half (48%) strongly oppose it, significantly higher than the share (53%) who said they would oppose building a nuclear power plant in their area.
Only 20% said they were in favor of such projects, and only 7% were strongly in favor.
Opposition to data centers grows
The findings, the first time Gallup has sought input in this area, come as opposition to new data centers soars across the United States, and concerns about noise, health and environmental damage continue to rise.
These concerns were reflected in the survey results, as 70% of respondents said they were concerned to some extent about how data centers would affect the local environment.
This included 50% highlighting excessive resource use, 18% mentioning both high water and energy use, a similar number (16%) mentioning noise pollution and air and water pollution, and others saying they would prefer the land to be used for other purposes.
Among other opposition was the impact on local quality of life, specifically around increased population and traffic, as well as potentially negative economic consequences such as higher utility bills, increases in the cost of living, and the potential use of taxpayer funds to build the centers.
Those who said they favored new data centers cited benefits to the local economy, job creation and increased tax revenue as possible pluses.
Concerns were also fairly consistent across all major demographic groups and across the political spectrum; however, Republican voters were slightly more likely to be in favor than Democrats.
“For the use of AI to expand in the United States, it will be necessary to build data centers that can handle the necessary computing power,” Gallup noted in his article.
“But most Americans appear to be taking a ‘not in my backyard’ attitude toward building additional data centers, and that attitude is especially intense given that nearly half strongly oppose such construction.”
“Overcoming this opposition represents a major hurdle in the expansion of AI computing. The intensity of the opposition means that the proposed data centers are likely to spur grassroots activism from local residents, as well as legal challenges. It also indicates that AI infrastructure could become a major campaign issue in this year’s local and state elections, and politicians who favor data centers in their area are likely taking a politically risky stance.”
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to receive news, reviews and opinions from our experts in your feeds.
