See where diesel-powered data center generators are polluting Virginia

Pollution from generators at data centers could cause respiratory symptoms and deaths in the region, an analysis for The Washington Post found.

STERLING, Va. — Not long after the enormous data center sprouted in Jessica Medeiros’s residential neighborhood, she began seeing black smoke.

“There are times when the generators are running and … soot falls to the ground,” Medeiros said. “I have no idea what the long-term impacts on our health may be.” On days when the bursts of smoke appear, she said, irritation in her throat and nose follows.

The 10,500 generators attached to data centers in Virginia produce enough pollution to harm public health even if used rarely, according to a new analysis of emissions permits for The Washington Post. Operating them for less than an hour per week, on average, creates the same public health impact as five power plants the size of the large Possum Point gas-fired power station near Quantico, according to the analysis by Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Washington.

That’s enough to worsen lung and cardiovascular conditions for people in the region and cause at least three premature deaths each year, the analysis found, based on state air permits and reported emissions from the data center owners.

Diesel exhaust contains nitrogen oxides, which help form smog, and fine particulate matter, including soot, which are linked to respiratory and heart disease.

Vantage, which operates the VA2 data center where Medeiros lives, said state environmental regulators “independently reviewed actual operating data of our VA2 campus, not worst‑case assumptions” and determined the levels are safe. The VA2 facility is powered by a small gas power plant installed on-site because the company was unable to quickly connect it to the already overburdened regional power grid. The plant’s emissions make VA2 one of the region’s most polluting data centers and were included in the analysis of health impacts for The Post.

The state modeling cited by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality does not account for some harmful pollutants included in the analysis for The Post, including ground level ozone and nitrate particles created when diesel emissions react with other chemicals in the air.

The company said it has also started installing new, cleaner diesel generator technology that substantially cuts pollution. Virginia recently changed its rules to require any diesel generators approved after June 30 use that technology.

Microsoft is switching to using fuel known as renewable diesel for its backup generators in some regions, including Northern Virginia, a company spokesperson said. It burns more cleanly than conventional diesel, but still emits harmful pollutants.

Memphis has become a flash point for concern about pollution from on-site power generation at data centers. Elon Musk’s AI venture xAI raced to boot up its Colossus 2 data center outside the city by installing dozens of mobile natural gas turbines. The NAACP alleges in a federal lawsuit that the turbines are operating illegally, spreading harmful air pollution to the community. The company said in court filings that state regulators approved the use of the generators, and that their removal could threaten national security.

The Trump administration submitted a filing in the case on May 13 that said it is evaluating a possible intervention on behalf of xAI, writing that the case is relevant to its “priorities with respect to promotion of artificial intelligence infrastructure.” 

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