Blasting begins Thursday through Christmas Eve for one of Columbia County's forthcoming data centers.
The controlled explosions near the Greenpoint data center construction site, in the Pumpkin Center area north of Harlem, are expected to last between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. every other weekday from Oct. 22 to Dec. 30, the county government announced Monday.
Nearby residents and businesses could hear brief blasts and "experience associated vibration" during scheduled activity, according to the county.
"Exact blast timing within that window may vary based on site and safety conditions," the county said in a statement. "All blasting will be conducted by the project contractor
in accordance with applicable safety requirements."
Other Columbia County construction projects have required controlled blasting to pierce levels of subsurface rock that can't be removed easily with conventional excavation equipment.
Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. of Charleston, S.C., is the listed contractor for the opening phase of Project Squash at 6423 Wrightsboro Road, on about 325 acres,according to a development filing May 5 with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.
Some Columbia County residents spent more than a year protesting the proposed data centers, citing energy consumption and environmental strains on the surrounding area. County officials have called opponents' claims exaggerated or false.
A bigger data center site, for tech giant Google, is slated for the county's White Oak Technology Park. Both data center sites are near Exit 183 off Interstate 20.
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Data center blasting set to begin in Columbia County
