NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — Environmental and community advocates warn that a federal rule change could lead to less notice about data centers being built throughout Georgia.
The EPA is considering a proposal to no longer require public notice and public comment for many air permits before they are approved.
These permits have played a vital role in the past.
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Maurice Carter is the president of Sustainable Newton. He says the notice played a critical role in drawing public attention to a proposed data center and temporary power generation facility, which was later ordered to stop work temporarily due to alleged illegal construction.
“We’ve been involved since November. We’ve commented on the application, we’ve commented on the draft permit, we sent notices that ultimately resulted in the project being shut down,” Carter said.
Channel 2’s Michael Doudna covered the data center and “pop-up” power facility last month, as Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division ordered workers to stop construction because the work had begun without the proper permits.
Carter and other opponents raised concerns that generators planned for the project could release pollutants into the air. They argue that without the public notice requirement, residents might never have learned about the project before construction began.
“The air pollution permit notices are one of the primary consistent ways that people can learn about proposed new facilities,” said Keri Powell, an attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center.
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Powell said eliminating the federal requirement could leave communities unaware of major developments until construction equipment arrives on site.
“They wake up one day, and they see bulldozers nearby constructing a new facility that they knew nothing about,” Powell said.
In a statement, the EPA said it is not eliminating public participation. Instead, the agency said states would decide “whether, when, and how to provide public participation” in permitting decisions. The statement continues: “It requires no state to change anything. If a state or local agency later chose to revise its own process, that change would go through its own public notice-and-comment process, at the state level and again at the federal level. States will be given the CHOICE to decide what was best for their communities. This is also the best reading of the Clean Air Act.”
However, residents worry that, in practice, it would lead to less notice and transparency about data centers.
“It definitely will make Georgia’s laws the last line of defense,” Carter said.
They say the process helps build trust by allowing residents to learn about proposed projects and comment on them.
“Public trust requires that things be done out in the open, not behind closed doors,” Powell said.
If the EPA adopts the proposal, residents would still likely receive notice for projects requiring rezoning or other local land-use approvals.
Public comment on the EPA proposal ends on Friday, August 31.
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