Inside the far-left's anti-data center push and what experts say is driving it: 'Playbook we've seen before'

Data Center Development Faces Local Opposition Over Energy and Water Demands

Data center construction has accelerated across multiple states as demand for computing infrastructure rises with artificial intelligence applications. Opposition campaigns have formed in several communities, citing effects on electricity rates, water supplies, and land use. Groups including Public Citizen, the Sierra Club, CodePink, and the Party for Socialism and Liberation have organized events and forums against specific projects.

Public Citizen participates in the Texas Data Center Rebellion, which held a two-day meeting in San Antonio. The Sierra Club’s Austin chapter joined the Party for Socialism and Liberation and Save Our Springs Alliance for a July forum opposing a large Austin-area development that includes data centers. CodePink has also targeted certain projects. In Texas, Texas Together, a coordinated campaign supported by the Texas Democratic Party and other Democratic organizations, has held town halls on the issue. The El Paso Young Democrats and El Paso County Democratic Party organized a protest against proposed facilities.

Several of these organizations have received grants from major philanthropic networks. Public Citizen has listed the Open Society Foundations among its supporters. The Sierra Club received $3.6 million from the Sixteen Thirty Fund, an Arabella Advisors-managed entity, between 2014 and 2022. CodePink has ties to funding networks associated with Neville Roy Singham. A Power the Future analysis noted roughly $285 million routed through six activist nonprofits linked to Singham.

Larry Behrens of Power the Future stated that some opposition efforts show coordinated messaging across locations, including similar legislative language and talking points. He compared the pattern to earlier campaigns against pipeline and energy projects. Behrens noted that while some local residents raise independent questions, uniform framing across distant sites suggests external coordination. He argued that data centers support jobs and require reliable energy sources, and that selective focus on data centers compared with other industrial uses warrants scrutiny.

Will Hild of Consumers’ Research described opposition as an extension of prior efforts against domestic energy production. He said activist networks are using local concerns to slow infrastructure projects needed for technological competition.

A Sixteen Thirty Fund spokesperson responded that communities have legitimate questions about project impacts on local resources. The spokesperson said dismissing such questions as anti-progress overlooks practical effects and urged developers to address community concerns directly.

Fox News polling conducted in summer 2025 found 70 percent of voters opposed new data centers in their own communities, while 30 percent supported them. Nearly 80 percent said construction should proceed more slowly to address environmental and local issues, while 20 percent favored faster building to maintain competitive position. Support for quicker development was higher among Republican men and self-identified MAGA Republicans.

Data centers require substantial electricity for servers and cooling systems, along with significant water volumes for evaporative cooling in many designs. Utilities in Virginia, Georgia, and Texas have issued statements projecting higher electricity demand that could require new generation capacity or delay retirements of existing plants. Some regional operators have warned of potential rate increases if buildout outpaces transmission and generation upgrades. Water usage estimates for large facilities range from hundreds of thousands to millions of gallons per day depending on location and technology.

Behrens said companies should engage directly with residents on specific project details rather than relying on national messaging. He noted that other large developments, such as manufacturing plants or distribution centers, also consume resources yet face different levels of organized resistance in some areas. He added that consistent application of standards across industries would clarify whether objections center on data centers specifically or broader growth patterns.

Opposition has appeared in midterm contests in Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Texas. Candidates in both parties have faced pressure to propose additional reviews, tax adjustments, or temporary pauses. In West Virginia, local meetings addressed air permits for power plants tied to data center needs.

The article reached out to CodePink, the Sierra Club, the Open Society Foundations, and Public Citizen. The Sixteen Thirty Fund provided the statement noted above.