Data Centers Shouldn’t Come at the Cost of Our Health

By Euniesha Davis

Prince George’s County does not have to choose between economic growth and community health. The voice of the people is clear: no new data center should be authorized without clear and tangible protections and benefits for existing communities. Land needed for affordable housing and community-serving uses must be protected—not crowded out by industrial development. Health and environmental protections must be strengthened. 

As demand for cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and digital storage explodes across the region, data centers are rapidly expanding into our communities. These facilities bring tax revenue—but without clear rules and public accountability, they risk deepening long-standing environmental, health, and economic disparities, while eroding our civil liberties. More recently, their use for dragnet-style facial recognition and surveillance have become crystal clear to our neighbors fighting to protect the civil rights which we’ve earned through the sweat of our toil and bloody struggles. 

That risk does not help build viable communities.

Data centers are massive, energy-intensive buildings. They often rely on diesel backup generators that worsen air pollution, generate constant noise, and intensify heat island effects. Their large paved footprints increase stormwater runoff, straining local infrastructure. In Prince George’s County, these impacts fall hardest on Black, Brown, low-income, and historically marginalized neighborhoods—communities that already face higher rates of asthma rates cardio-vascular disease. 

This is not just about one facility at a time—it’s about cumulative burden.

The strain extends to our basic utilities. Data centers require enormous amounts of electricity and water, competing with residential needs during peak periods and increasing pressure on water treatment, sewer, and stormwater systems. When upgrades are needed, the costs are passed on to residents through higher rates, while corporate users reap the benefits. Without clear protections from our State Utility Regulators, it makes little sense for Prince George’s County government to further risk the wallets of the average resident with little promised returns.

That is not shared prosperity.

Energy and infrastructure equity are essential. Any proposal for data centers should be required to use 100 percent renewable energy, pay their fair share toward grid upgrades, and prevent cost-shifting onto residential and low-income ratepayers. Community benefit agreements should be standard—supporting workforce pipelines for local residents, clean energy job training, community solar programs, and contributions to environmental justice and infrastructure funds.

Finally, transparency matters. Residents deserve public reporting on energy and water use, emissions, and promised community benefits—and a seat at the table in land-use and energy decisions.

Data centers may power the digital future. But Prince George’s County should insist on a future that is healthy, fair, and shared—rather than paid for with the well-being of the same communities that have long borne the heaviest burdens.