Proposed Data Centers Raise Environmental Concerns in Pennsylvania’s Poconos

Nearly two dozen data centers have been proposed across Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains, raising questions about how the developments could affect the region’s waterways, landscape, tourism industry, and electricity supply.

Emilie Lounsberry, a reporter with the nonprofit news organization Inside Climate News, told Radio Catskill that the Poconos offer several resources data-center developers need, including open land, water, and access to power.

But many of the proposed sites are near environmentally sensitive areas. Lounsberry said approximately 80 percent of Pennsylvania’s highest-quality streams and wetlands—designated by the state as “exceptional value”—are located in the Poconos.

Residents have raised concerns about water and electricity consumption, utility costs, property values, noise, and the permanent loss of the region’s rural character. At the same time, the projects could generate construction jobs and additional tax revenue for local governments.

“It becomes a balancing act,” Lounsberry said, particularly in communities that rely heavily on tourism but also need to expand their tax bases.

The debate is largely playing out before township supervisors and local zoning boards. Pennsylvania municipalities generally cannot prohibit a legitimate land use outright, but they can determine where data centers may be located and establish zoning restrictions.

Since Lounsberry’s article was published, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has signed an executive order establishing new requirements for data-center development. Lounsberry said it remains too early to know how those rules will affect individual projects.

Read Lounsberry’s full Inside Climate News report, “Coming to Some of Pennsylvania’s Most Picturesque Places: Data Centers.”

Photo by: Lake, Shohola reservoir, – Perkons