At the urging of Valley Interfaith and allies, the City of Brownsville agreed to vote on a 90-day moratorium for all data center projects. Leaders are now pushing for more. 

After learning about a proposed data center less than two miles away from a key member institution, leaders educated over 100 residents through civic academies on data centers and power, and helped pack the City Commission Chambers twice, providing public testimony. 

“Data centers require millions of gallons of water daily to cool their equipment,” said Valley Interfaith leader Nancy Cruz. 

“In a region where water scarcity is an ongoing reality and conservation is vital for our future, we cannot afford to prioritize the cooling demands of tech corporations over the basic needs of our residents, our agricultural neighbors, and our local ecosystem.”

Leaders also raised concerns about how data centers would increase noise pollution and strain local energy resources, risking power outages, while creating very few permanent high-paying jobs for local residents. 

Following Brownsville’s first public hearing in July, the anonymous developer withdrew their data center application. At the second public hearing in August, the City of Brownsville agreed to vote on a 90-day moratorium in September. 

Valley Interfaith is now urging the City to expand the permitting process timeline for data centers to 180 days to give residents more time to understand their impact and to create safeguards that protect local resources. They are additionally working with allies to encourage meaningful public participation to shape regulations on data centers in order to protect their communities, water, and energy resources. 

Brownsville Residents Keep up Pressure Opposing Data Centers, ValleyCentral.com [pdf]