Senator Warnock Calls for Statewide Moratorium on Data Center Construction in Georgia Amid Transparency Concerns
U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) has called for a statewide moratorium on data center construction in Georgia. This announcement follows his visit to the proposed site of OpenAI’s new 3.2-gigawatt data center in Effingham County, where he met with residents and members of the Protect Effingham Alliance. These groups expressed significant concerns regarding the project's potential impact, including higher utility costs and increased water, light, and noise pollution. Senator Warnock highlighted a perceived lack of transparency in the planning and development of such large-scale data centers across the state and country. He stated that a moratorium could only be lifted for specific projects if certain safeguards are implemented, such as assurances against utility bill increases, the elimination of 'sweetheart tax giveaways' to developers, the absence of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), and guarantees against air, water, noise, and light pollution. OpenAI's 'Project Camellia,' a 1,400-acre data c... 
