The proposed TAC Data Center development northeast of Great Falls, between Malmstrom Air Force Base and the Missouri River, by Ardent Tech, released its option to lease 569 acres of land as announced by the Great Falls Development Alliance Council Board Meeting at Great Falls College yesterday.
The large-scale data center facility would have demanded 600 megawatts of new electricity, nearly equal to the power needs of 88% of all Montana homes for a year. This single data center would have created unrealistic demands on the state’s grid infrastructure and/or require new resource and water-insensitive electrical energy generation power plants. In addition to the data center’s enormous energy footprint, the project posed a direct threat to Montana’s water resources, including pollution, evaporative cooling, thermal pollution, additional water needs for electrical power generation, and the direct data center consumption of millions of gallons of water every day.
“Montana’s future depends on protecting our water from being drained for external markets,” said Guy Alsentzer, Executive Director of Upper Missouri Waterkeeper. “Many of Montana’s river basins are already overallocated for water and facing water shortages. We can’t let data centers and the new power they’ll demand become the final straw on the camel’s back that pushes us over the tipping point.”
Data center developments are often speculative ventures driven by shifting tranches of outside capital and shell companies shopping for the best incentives. The Montana Legislature lowered the data center property tax rate to incentivize development across the state, but has thus far failed to act in any meaningful way to protect ratepayers’ pocketbooks, valued water resources, and Montana’s future. The long-term risks to our water and energy future posed by data centers also threaten the viability of other community strengthening and lasting economic development opportunities.
This is a victory for Montana communities, rivers, fisheries, agriculture, and all other water users that rely upon abundant and clean water resources. Large-scale data centers jeopardize the needs of local communities, agricultural operations, the state’s $1.3 billion cold-water dependent outdoor economy, and local businesses that depend on our finite water resources. These needs far outweigh the false job promises, enormous energy demands, water consumption, and pollution that come with massive data centers.
Upper Missouri Waterkeeper will continue monitoring proposed data center and industrial projects across the Upper Missouri Basin to ensure Montana communities, water resources, and taxpayers are protected. Existing data center proposals would double, triple or even quadruple electrical power demand in Montana. Consumers and Montanans’ waters should be the priority.
There are several other large scale data center proposals that remain live across the state that threaten our valued finite water resources and communities. Waterkeeper will continue to track these proposals and work to protect local communities from the many negative impacts associated with data centers.
Learn more about the threats of data centers here.
Photo Credit: Peoples Natural Gas