The Potomac River ranks as the most endangered river in the U.S. according to American Rivers’ 2026 list, released this month. The designation is largely driven by rapid, uncontrolled data center expansion in the watershed and by the impacts of a major sewage spill into the river in January 2026. The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) issued a statement on April 16 in response to the report. PEC President Chris Miller stated that the listing underscores the cumulative impac

Fifteen minutes after Susan Bourgeois was appointed to lead Louisiana Economic Development , the state agency responsible for strengthening business growth, she got her first data center pitch. "I was pulled aside in the lobby of the Hilton hotel by the CEO of Entergy Louisiana, who said, 'We have a project and need to talk,'" Bourgeois said. It was a proposal from Meta to build one of the largest-ever AI data centers in the world. Bourgeois jumped on it. Data centers, which

long with wineries, equestrian farms and George Washington's estate, Virginia's known for being the data center capital of the country, with at least 665 facilities servicing major companies including Google, Amazon, Oracle and Meta (1). It's a Vantage data center, however, in Loudoun County — dubbed "Data Center Alley" — that's raising particular concerns after a recent study by the Piedmont Environmental Council found that emissions of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from i

Sterling residents are raising concerns over the impacts of a data center that is operating independently from the region’s power grid – making it the county’s first data center with its own microgrid. The Vantage II data center is located along Glenn Drive and is bordered by a federal government building and an auto dealership. Nearby are are homes where residents say they now live with constant noise has interrupted their sleep, working hours and recreational time. Noise co

Residents of a Sterling neighborhood already are upset about constant data center noise — and now they have a new concern. A study done for an environmental group shows emissions from the center could have severe health consequences. Operators of the data center say they are fully compliant with state and local rules. Whether it’s daytime or the dead of night, there is no such thing as peace and quiet in this Sterling neighborhood. Here’s why: A Vantage data center there is t