- New York State has temporarily banned new large-scale data centers
- The one-year moratorium affects new campuses of more than 50 MW
- New York wants to evaluate community, environmental and network impacts
New York state has banned the construction of new hyperscaler data centers, marking the latest step as local opposition grows against artificial intelligence and the construction of cloud facilities, with communities citing concerns about rising electricity costs, water consumption and other environmental factors.
The state’s governor, Kathy Hochul, is responsible for introducing the first statewide moratorium on new campuses, imposing a one-year pause while the state examines the environment, energy supply and communities.
Projects that have already been authorized will continue as expected, but new construction will face restrictions and delays until the moratorium is lifted.
Data centers banned in New York for one year
The one-year ban gives the state time to develop regulations that address some of the challenges that large hyperscale data centers present, including strained network supplies, emissions and other environmental impacts, and strains on local communities.
Under the new ban, campuses requiring at least 50 MW of electricity will be affected, which for an AI data center is not much. Some of the largest measure power consumption in hundreds of megawatts, or even gigawatts in the case of high-profile flagship campuses like OpenAI’s Project Stargate.
“[The moratorium] “is the direct result of immense public pressure from people across the state demanding that their elected leaders protect them from the onslaught of Big Tech companies, which threaten the state’s clean air and water and the financial security of New Yorkers,” said Laura Shindell, New York State Director of Food & Water Watch.
“New York has always been at the forefront of innovation and change, but we have also always ensured that New Yorkers benefit,” Hochul said.
Although New York represents the first temporary statewide ban, other regions have also been looking to pause construction while they assess the damage. Last month, Seattle also voted to ban new projects for a year.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to receive news, reviews and opinions from our experts in your feeds.
