The proposed data center center in Juab County near Mona provides one more example of a data center project developed and proposed “under the radar”. This projected sparked major local backlash after being approved via a conditional use permit which very few local residents knew about. The project was approved by the county planning commission in April during a four-minute (!!!!) meeting at which four people spoke, including the wife of the landowner where the data center would be built, a county commissioner, and one of the development partners. A land owner living across the street from the planned project only found out about it when a gas company rep came to his home asking permission to run a gas pipeline through his land to power the data center. The Mona data center would be one of Utah’s largest, spanning 361 acres and needing up to 750 megawatts of energy from Rocky Mountain Power’s grid to power it. Like the Box Elder data center, the proposed Mona project was developed in relative secrecy, shielded as much as possible from public input and potential/likely negative reactions and protests.

According to Cleanview, a market intelligence company tracking U.S. power infrastructure and data center development, as of September 2026 there were currently 40 operating and 26 proposed data centers (of various sizes) in the state of Utah. To say these proposed data centers projects are unpopular and unwanted would significantly understate local sentiments. Currently, local residents in Tooele County are fighting a 500 megawatt data center project proposed for a 585 acre area near the southern shore of the Great Salt Lake. Residents contend that it would further strain Tooele County’s already over-allocated groundwater resources and dry out local wells. They also say that wastewater and brine discharges from the proposed project would negatively impact Great Salt Lake wetlands. A proposed Red Butte project is a staggering 2,564-acre development that includes its own on-site natural gas power plant. Initial filings estimate its water usage could reach up to 1,900 acre-feet per year. Southern Utah residents have packed open-house events and planning commission meetings, and expressed strong opposition to the proposed industrialization of their rural county. Residents of the drought-prone desert environment expressed fears about the impact of the estimated 1,900 acre-feet of water required for Red Butte project on long-term water security, and the potential loss of local agricultural farmland.

Clearly most Americans, Republicans, Independents, and Democrats alike, do not want more data centers built in their communities. And for good reason. Data centers result in increased energy consumption and costs for the surrounding communities, increased water usage (especially problematic for a state in the grip of chronic drought), greater potential for infrastructure overloads and costs, more power plant emissions, problems from discharges of contaminated water, and greater levels of noise pollution. In addition, despite the strain they put on local resources and infrastructure, most data center projects have received significant tax breaks from the city or county in which they’re built.

People across the nation are now waking up to the very negative impacts of data centers on their communities and vocally opposing new projects. Still, the events of 2026 here in Utah have demonstrated that federal and state (and often county) officials will not protect us from exploitation by mega-billionaire tech company executives and other extremely wealthy predatory investors. Nor can we dreamily think there will be no data center proposals in Cache County’s future. Clearly citizens must act now to keep data centers out of their communities.

In response to growing anti-data center sentiment, on June 23rd the Cache County Council voted for a six-month moratorium on accepting or reviewing any proposals for building a data center or related power infrastructure in county’s unincorporated areas. This pause gives the County’s development department staff time to study the potential impacts of data center projects on local electricity grid capacity and water usage, and to draft updated land-use regulations. While this was a good first step, it’s disappointing that the moratorium was not accompanied by a statement from the Council opposing any future data center construction in Cache County. Since Council did not issue such a statement, county residents are left to speculate and guess as to Council members’ views concerning the possibility of data center construction, and to wonder about whether the Council is prepared to do everything in their power to oppose such a project from being hoisted on our county.

We currently have a little less than three months left until the moratorium expires (on December 23rd, after the upcoming election). It cannot be extended. We must therefore take action now to make sure we do not suffer the same fate as our neighbors in Box Elder County, a fate residents in Tooele and Juab counties are desperately trying to avoid. The time is now for all Cache County residents who recognize the importance of keeping data centers out of Cache County to contact their Council member and express their opposition to the prospect of a data center being built here. Residents should also call on all Council members to clearly state whether or not they will actively oppose any future data center construction proposals. Cache County residents have the right and an urgent need to know whether the Council’s current members will do everything legally possible to stop any data center from being built here.

I hope the Council will waste no time in clearly stating their commitment to keeping the county’s unincorporated areas free from data centers and data center-supporting power plants. Residents who live in the area of Cache County Council Seat 3 can rest assured that if I’m elected to the Council there will be at least one strong and unwavering voice of opposition to any proposal to build a data center in Cache County. Let’s keep our county free from the spreading bane of data centers, and give a clear and resounding NO!!! to the prospect of having one built in Cache County!