PHOENIX — A divisive data center complex planned for the Tucson area wasn’t on the agenda for Arizona utility regulators, but Project Blue opponents still showed up to Wednesday’s meeting to make their disapproval clear.
No Desert Data Center Coalition sat in on the two-hour public meeting, listening as commissioners discussed and voted on transmission lines and other projects.
“We wanted to show the ACC that we're here, and that we are present, and that we're interested in forming a statewide resistance against data centers in southern Arizona,” Jeff Wirth told ABC15.
Beale Infrastructure hopes to begin construction next year on the massive $3.6 billion data center complex at Interstate 10 and Houghton Road in Pima County.
The Arizona Corporation Commission will need to approve the company’s agreement with Tucson Electric Power for the complex’s cooling system. Beale Infrastructure made the deal with the power company after the Tucson City Council shot down a proposal to provide reclaimed water for a different cooling system.
“We want to tell the ACC that the community doesn't want this,” Wirth said. “The end users do not want this. The ratepayers do not want this.”
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Marisol Winfrey Herrera, who also traveled to Phoenix from Tucson, said she fears the data center could lead to higher residential electric rates.
“One of the biggest things that communities across the United States have seen is how the increased need for power brought by data centers directly translate to an increase in rates for ratepayers,” she said, adding that industrial users already pay 10 cents less per unit of power than residential customers.
In a statement to ABC15, Beale Infrastructure said the project won’t raise rates for TEP’s other customers, adding that the company has also committed to “investing in 100% renewable energy for this project.”
The developer said the project’s design doesn’t call for water for cooling.
“The only water use will be for toilets, sinks and fire suppression, similar to any other office development,” a Beale Infrastructure spokesperson said.
But Winfrey Herrera said she is worried about increased water use related to the extra power demands.
“At the end of the day, some community is going to be deprived of water. ... Even if they switch to air-cooled, the power that they use is still going to need water to generate that power,” she said.
She and Wirth also said their opposition is not just about the environmental impacts.
“The end user for Project Blue would have been Amazon Web Services,” Wirth said. “And Amazon Web Services, they do business with Palantir, and Palantir does business with ICE, and we're not interested in having a data center that's aiding in the ripping of our communities apart.”
Winfrey Herrera said it’s important for people to make their voices heard.
“Know that the water needs you to protect the water. The land needs you to protect the land, because they don't have voices to speak up for themselves,” she said. “They can't vote. They can't show up at a commission meeting or a city council meeting to pressure their elected officials.”
