A proposed data center in eastern North Carolina would be one of the largest in the Southeast, if approved. But it has met local resistance.
Energy Storage Solutions is a data center developer that has built smaller campuses in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The company plans to break ground on a 300-acre site in Rocky Mount early next year if county commissioners approve selling the land.
This $19 billion, 900-megawatt data center would require energy equal to the total output of the Shearon Harris nuclear reactor in Wake County. County commissioners voted earlier this month to amend zoning rules to provide more flexibility for data center construction.
Nearby residents formed Edgecombe Neighbors for Data Center Accountability, opposing the sale until they can get more information about the project’s “community economic benefits, projected impact on resident energy costs, and concerns for long-term environmental and health risks.”
“I would hope the County Commissioners consider their moral obligation to their constituents with noise pollution, water usage and pollution, and other unknowns,” said Janice Bullock, an organizer with the community opposition group. “In the long term, this is not going to be in the best interest for the residents.”
Community members plan to meet Tuesday night at 5:30 p.m. at Mt. Galilee Primitive Baptist Church in Rocky Mount. The Edgecombe County Board of Commissioners will meet again on Dec. 1.
