The New Brunswick City Council has voted to remove data centres as a permitted use in a local redevelopment plan, following significant resident opposition. The decision was met with cheers from attendees at a council meeting on Wednesday, where environmental concerns were a primary focus.
While no specific data centre project had been formally proposed, the mere possibility of one being built on several parcels of land slated for redevelopment sparked alarm. City planner Daniel Dominguez stated the inclusion was intended to "diversify the commercial development site," but acknowledged it was "not critical to the project."
Environmental Concerns Drive Opposition
Residents and local activist groups, including the Climate Revolution Action Network, organised against the plan, citing fears over energy consumption, water usage, noise pollution, and the broader implications of large-scale AI and data infrastructure. "We don't want these kinds of centres in here that are going to take resources from the community," one attendee said after the vote.
These concerns reflect a national trend, as documented by a Business Insider investigation published last year. That report found over 1,200 data centres approved for construction across the US by the end of 2024, with the potential to consume power equivalent to entire states and vast amounts of water in drought-prone regions.
Part of a Wider National Movement
New Brunswick's decision places it among a growing number of American communities pushing back against data centre developments. In Claremore, Oklahoma, police arrested a resident last week for exceeding a three-minute speaking limit at a council meeting discussing a proposed centre.
Similarly, in San Marcos, Texas, hundreds of residents protested at City Hall on Tuesday, leading the council to scrap its data centre plan after a nearly nine-hour debate, according to local reports.
The council's amendment also reinstates a requirement for a park to be included on the redevelopment site, as stipulated in a prior plan. The move underscores the increasing tension between the rapid expansion of digital infrastructure and local community priorities regarding environmental sustainability and quality of life.