The great American data center divide

In Tazewell County, Illinois, Michael Deppert depends on a natural pool of water beneath the sandy soils of his farm to irrigate the pumpkins, corn, and soybeans growing in his fields.

So when a data center was proposed about eight miles away, he feared it would tap the same aquifer, potentially eroding crop yields and profits.

Deppert, who is also the president of the local farm bureau lobby group, says locals were also “nervous” about how a data center would affect the “good, clean drinking water.” Residents launched a fierce opposition campaign, packing city council meetings and mounting petitions. After several months, the project, led by developer Western Hospitality Partners, was scrapped.

“You just can’t lay down and let everybody do whatever they wish,” Deppert says.

It is just one of the many pockets of resistance opening up across rural America, where a backlash against the explosive growth of the infrastructure for AI and cloud computing is at its sharpest.

Data centers, once clustered around cities and towns, are moving into farm country in search of cheap land and tax incentives. According to Pew Research Center, 67 percent of planned data centers are in rural areas, while 87 percent of existing data centers are in urban ones.

“Rural communities have become a target,” says Miquel Vila, lead analyst at Data Center Watch, a research project run by AI security company 10a Labs. More than 160 new AI-focused data centers have been built across the US in the past three years, a roughly 70 percent increase on the total, according to Bloomberg data.

As the industry has expanded, public opinion has hardened against it. Pew research found that Americans are far more likely to view data centers as harmful than beneficial in terms of environmental impact, domestic energy costs, and quality of life in nearby communities.