Triangle county may join growing push to pause data center growth. Here’s why.
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- April 21 hearing set to consider a one-year data center moratorium.
- Staff will draft land-use and Unified Development Ordinance revisions during moratorium.
- County cites water, power, pollution and state legal limits as reasons.
Orange County could put the brakes on big data centers in April, even though there are no proposals yet and very few places with the water and electricity to power them.
The Orange County commissioners voted Tuesday to hold an April 21 public hearing before considering a one-year moratorium on large-scale data centers, including artificial intelligence data centers, cryptocurrency mining facilities, and data processing facilities.
The board also asked staff to begin revising the county’s land use plan and Unified Development Ordinance rules during the moratorium.
Data centers are buildings that house networked computer servers that store, process and distribute large amounts of data.
They are proliferating across North Carolina, with tech giant Google announcing a $1 billion investment in its Lenoir data center operations northwest of Charlotte and Microsoft confirming plans for a new center in the Person County Mega Park.
German industrial manufacturer Siemens announced this week that it would bring 350 jobs to Knightdale and Wendell in eastern Wake County aimed at supporting its U.S. data center customers.
But grassroots groups forming nationwide are pushing their local and state officials to oppose data center expansion.
Orange County Commissioner Marilyn Carter told the board at its Feb. 5 meeting that the National Association of Counties (NACo) recently urged counties to get ahead of the issue. Bipartisan lawmakers in the General Assembly are also pushing for “legislation to protect residents from some of the impacts,” she said.
“Counties are strongly encouraged, in no uncertain words, to prepare by reviewing potential impacts and assessing potential guard rails and their land-use plans in the interest of their residents,” Carter said.
Orange County’s move comes just weeks after Chatham County enacted a similar one-year moratorium on data centers while its staff draws up new rules. Gates County, in northeastern North Carolina, enacted a moratorium in December.
In Wake County, the town of Apex is considering a one-year moratorium after a plan was scrapped for a 300-megawatt data center on farmland near Shearon Harris Nuclear Plant.
Working around state zoning law
Orange County Planning Director Cy Stober noted a 2024 state law that precludes a straightforward approach to limiting data centers.
The law restricts the ability of cities and counties to down-zone land uses and development density by requiring every affected landowner to agree in writing. It also expands the definition of down-zoning to include the creation of non-conforming uses, structures or lots, blocking attempts to prohibit previously allowed development conditions in the future.
County staff is looking at substituting one use for another, such as allowing smaller data centers that use less electricity and water. Other limits are already in place, including the Rural Buffer around Chapel Hill and Carrboro, which prohibits water and sewer service in rural areas.
Commissioner Earl McKee noted on Feb. 5 that the cost of electricity in northern Orange County could be affected by a planned Person County data center, which will draw from Duke Energy’s Hyco Lake plant.
Data center water, electricity, pollution
Large-scale data centers can cover hundreds of acres and require large cooling systems — and equally large amounts of water — generating a steady hum that can disturb nearby neighbors.
The electricity required by large-scale data centers can power a medium-size city, Stober said.
He cited staff research that found large-scale data centers used nearly 4.4% of the nation’s electricity in 2023. The demand has since exploded, and energy use is expected to grow by 20% by 2030, he said.
Data centers can also consume up to 20 million gallons of water a day, compared to roughly 7 million gallons for over 86,000 customers served by the Orange Water and Sewer Authority in Chapel Hill and Carrboro.
That not only drains local water supplies, but also can result in higher costs for customers, Stober said. He also noted findings that show communities living up to a mile away can experience significant air pollution, as well as higher levels of nitrogen dioxide and diesel particulate matter.
Orange-Chatham Sierra Club Chair John Rees urged county staff to consult other resources, including Sierra Club data on clean energy and consumer costs, while drafting the new rules.
“One thing to keep in mind is that the Sierra Club is not an anti-data center as a rule. An amount of data centers need to exist for the Internet to function at all,” Reese said. “It’s a point that time and thoughtful analysis needs to be made before allowing data centers in Orange County.”
This story was originally published March 18, 2026 at 8:02 AM.
CORRECTION: Orange-Chatham Sierra Club Chair John Rees spells his name without an “e” on the end.
