Vermont can do more to guard against data centers
Vermont has a long tradition of protecting our natural resources and ensuring economic development serves the public good. As data centers expand across the country, we should build on that tradition, not assume our existing laws can address every challenge the industry presents.
In a recent commentary (Vermont Has the Tools to Keep Data Centers in Check, Oct. 12), the author argues that Vermont’s existing laws are enough. Vermont does have strong environmental and utility regulations, but large-scale data centers are a new and rapidly evolving industry, raising challenges our laws were not designed to address.
State agencies have authority to regulate these projects, but authority alone is not enough. Policymakers must provide clear direction about how that authority should be used. The impacts of data centers are still emerging. Their demands on electricity systems, water resources, land use, and local communities continue to evolve as the technology changes and development grows.
Utilities argue that data centers could lower electricity bills by spreading infrastructure costs across more customers. Maybe. But experience elsewhere shows that the industry’s enormous appetite for electricity and water can push electricity bills higher. Strong regulations can help ensure Vermont families are not left paying the price.
The investment behind these projects is unprecedented. Companies are spending billions of dollars to build facilities that consume extraordinary amounts of power and water. Vermont should ask whether our regulatory framework is prepared not just for today’s projects, but for the larger projects that may arrive tomorrow.
This is not an argument against innovation or economic development. It is an argument for getting the rules right before problems arise. Vermont has always been at its best when it plans ahead, sets clear expectations, and ensures growth benefits local communities.
We have an opportunity to get ahead of this industry rather than react to its consequences later. Vermont doesn’t need to wait for Washington. We can do what Vermont has long done well: Take a careful look at emerging risks and ensure our laws are strong enough to protect our communities, our wallets, and the natural resources that define this state.