Ohio Data Center News

Feb 27, 2026

Ohio towns are pushing back against data centers to varying degrees of success

Multiple Ohio municipalities have announced moratoriums and zoning actions to pause or restrict data center construction.

Main action: Around 18 municipalities are considering or have enacted temporary moratoriums on data center construction (examples: Lordstown instituted an early ban; Jerome Township issued permits after a moratorium; Vienna Township is using a pause to pursue zoning changes such as limits on decibels and megawatt usage). The article documents legal challenges (Lordstown vs. developer) and notes moratoriums are temporary unless replaced by lasting zoning rules.
Background and details: The state has offered sales tax exemptions on materials to build data centers; industry figures cited $931 million in state and local taxes in 2023 (Data Center Coalition audit) and more than $1 billion in 2024 (Ohio Chamber study), of which $260 million was a direct contribution. Ohio legislators have proposed bills including HB646 (a commission to study impacts) and a slate from Senate Democrats to give local communities more veto power. Residents’ concerns include noise, utility bills, and wastewater discharge; industry responses mention closed-loop water systems, working with utilities, and abiding by environmental regulations.

Feb 25, 2026

What the Tech: What AI means for your wallet and environment

WRDW/WAGT reports on environmental impacts of AI data centers.

Main findings: The article cites a 2023 study that U.S. data centers use roughly 4 percent of all electricity generated, a figure that is expected to more than double as new facilities come online; some AI-focused data centers under construction could use as much electricity as 2 million homes. It also notes there are currently ~4,000 data centers in the U.S., with major expansions underway in Virginia, Georgia, Arizona, and Ohio, and that some new facilities are requesting as much power as small cities.
Water and usage details: A Department of Energy study found some centers use “millions of gallons every day”, equivalent to the water needs of a town of 50,000 people; a UC Riverside study found each AI chatbot session uses roughly “a half-liter of fresh water” to cool servers. The article gives an example that 3 million simple chatbot messages like “thank you” could consume around 1,500 kilowatt hours, and references President Trump’s “Ratepayer Protection Pledge” encouraging large tech companies to cover their own energy costs.

Feb 24, 2026

College environmentalists imagine their futures…

Students from West Virginia University and Concord University met with lawmakers at the state Capitol to press for protections and transparency on proposed data center development while the West Virginia House of Delegates recently approved new certification rules for high-impact data centers.

Main action: Students (more than 50 attendees) participated in the 36th annual Environmental Day to urge lawmakers for community protections, transparency, and regulation of data center developments; the article reports the House of Delegates approved new certification rules for high-impact data centers but voted down amendments on water use, a 500-foot buffer, increased reporting/transparency, and local petition/ballot power.
Background and details: The students named include Andrew O’Neal, Noi Alfgeirsson, Elise Vuiller and Jalen Cuyun Carter; residents from Mingo, Tucker and Mason counties have raised similar concerns, and under current law local governments have no power to regulate certified data centers;
- Event: 36th annual Environmental Day
  - Date: Monday, Feb. 23 (as reported in the article/photo caption)
  - Time: not specified
  - Location: West Virginia State Capitol, Charleston, WV
  - Agenda/subject: student meetings with lawmakers to express concerns about proposed data center developments, request protections and transparency

Feb 23, 2026

JLL: Hyperscale and AI Demand Push North American Data Centers Toward Industrial Scale

JLL has published the North America Data Center Report Year-End 2025 outlining a shift from cyclical real estate behavior to industrial-scale, infrastructure-like growth in digital infrastructure.

Key announcement: JLL’s report finds North America at 39 GW installed capacity (19 GW leased colocation, 20 GW hyperscaler-owned) and 35 GW under construction, with vacancy at 1% and 92% of construction pre-leased; JLL also reports 64% of new builds are in frontier markets and highlights potential for Texas (unified) to surpass Northern Virginia by 2030.
Background/details: JLL expanded methodology to include owner-occupied hyperscale capacity and 40+ additional markets, resetting baseline; it documents capital market activity including debt origination rising from $27B (2020) to $92B (2025), a $40B consortium acquisition of Aligned Data Centers (expected 2026 close), a $30B Blue Owl–Meta JV, and $17B of asset-backed securities issuance in 2025; it flags multi-year grid interconnection timelines (avg ~4 years), interim use of mobile natural gas turbines, and rising BESS deployments.

Feb 22, 2026

Data centers in Ohio: Economic boost or environmental burden?

House Bill 646 would create a data center study commission to examine data center expansion across Ohio and assess environmental and grid impacts before projects move forward.

Main announcement: House Bill 646 proposes a bipartisan data center study commission that will examine environmental effects, electrical grid impacts, water usage, noise, and local economic impacts prior to project approvals; the bill is currently in committee.
Background & details: Ohio has about 200 data centers (many clustered in Central Ohio); New Albany has seen 14 companies build more than 68 data centers (about 40 operational). Policy Matters Ohio reports at least $140 million in tax exemptions granted for data center construction and estimates up to $1.6 billion in potential state/local revenue foregone tied to incentives for Amazon, Google and Microsoft. The article cites concerns including a proposed Adams County facility that would use >20x the county’s electricity, potential water use of up to 5 million gallons/day, and reliance on diesel backup generators (sound levels up to 90dB). Microsoft has pledged carbon negative by 2030 and a community-first infrastructure commitment; Amazon aims net-zero by 2040 and to power some operations with nuclear by 2050.

Feb 21, 2026

Trump-Backed Gas Plant Could Become Biggest US Power Polluter

US President Donald Trump has proposed a massive gas-fired power plant in Ohio, intended to be led by SoftBank Group Corp., as part of broader Japan-US investment commitments.

Main announcement: The proposal is for a 9.2 gigawatt combined-cycle gas-fired power plant in Ohio, described in a Commerce Department fact sheet and intended to be led by SoftBank Group Corp.; the development is reported as roughly $33 billion in scale and would be one of the largest US sources of CO2 if built (estimates range ~16.2–19.4 million metric tons CO2/year).
Background and details: The project is linked to Japan’s $550 billion commitment to invest in the US under a recent trade agreement; estimates cited come from BloombergNEF (Helen Kou) and the Rhodium Group; analysts note the plant’s output may meet rising demand driven by the expansion of data centers within the PJM Interconnection region.

Feb 20, 2026

Episode for February 20, 2026

The Allegheny Front released a podcast episode on Feb 20, 2026 covering an avian flu surge and regional environmental and industrial issues.

Episode details & main stories: The Feb 20, 2026 episode (runtime 29:30, downloadable mp3) focuses on an avian flu surge in Pennsylvania with state agricultural officials and USDA increasing testing and surveillance; it also reviews the aftermath of the Clairton Coke Works explosion (now six months after two deaths) and the transfer of the plant to Nippon (Nippon’s plans have not yet been released).
Additional reporting & concrete details: The episode summarizes a new study on deaths attributable to air pollution in the Pittsburgh region; it highlights growing opposition to dozens of proposed data centers in the region and cites a specific proposal in Delaware City that would use 20 million gallons of water a year. All facts are drawn from linked reporting and the episode content.

Feb 20, 2026

Columbia Gas Ohio Rates Surge 35% in 2026

Columbia Gas Ohio announced a 35% hike to its default supply (Price to Compare, PTC) rates effective February 1, 2026.

Main announcement: Columbia Gas Ohio raised its default supply/PTC rate by 35% effective February 1, 2026, producing a utility PTC of $1.071 per ccf; a customer using 100 ccf would pay $107.10 in supply charges, with delivery charges and taxes noted as an additional $125, making a total bill more than $230. The release is an announcement by OHEnergyRatings.com warning residential customers about the rate increase.
Background and details: The firm cites an Arctic blast / Winter Storm Fern, higher spot and futures prices (spot average $9.03 per mmBTU, February NYMEX $7.460 per mmBTU, markets in New York/New England > $40 per mmBTU), and demand drivers including LNG exports and data centers. OHEnergyRatings.com recommends locking fixed-rate plans (examples: fixed rates up to 40% less than the $1.071/ccf PTC) for 6 months or longer to avoid further price spikes.

Feb 19, 2026

Salute Military Story: Kathy Miller

Kathy Miller is currently a Data Center Operator (DCO) supporting Compass Datacenters at the IAD-E site.

Main announcement: Kathy Miller is currently a DCO supporting Compass Datacenters at the IAD-E site; this is presented as her current role in the interview.
Background & details: She joined the United States Marine Corps (left for bootcamp in March 2019, checked into her unit in Sept 2020), served as an Aviation Electronics Technician with MALS-39 at Camp Pendleton, finished her contract as a dual-qualified Avionics Technician, and cites GySgt Rolon Garcia for mentorship; social follow links provided: Facebook (@ Kathy Miller) and LinkedIn (@ Kathy Miller).

Feb 18, 2026

Could Texas Overtake Northern Virginia as the Data Center Capital?

JLL’s latest market analysis reports a structural expansion of the North American data center industry driven by hyperscale and AI demand, with vacancy rates at 1% for the second consecutive year.

Key findings & figures: JLL reports 39 GW active capacity and a 35 GW pipeline across North America, with vacancy at 1%; nearly two-thirds of new capacity is being built outside traditional hubs. Texas has 6.5 GW under construction and could overtake Northern Virginia by 2030; there are >10 developments exceeding 1 GW, rents rose 9% in 2025 (and 60% since 2020), most new leases include annual escalations ≥3%, and tenants are targeting deliveries in 2027 or later.
Power, timelines & market shifts: Hyperscalers (the top five cloud providers) plan $710 billion in 2026 capex supporting ~35 GW global capacity; OpenAI and Anthropic account for ~10 GW of announced projects. The report highlights grid interconnection timelines of 4+ years, utilities-delivered capacity expected late 2028–2029, and developers pursuing behind-the-meter generation, microgrids, phased deployments, and early collaboration with utilities and governments to accelerate delivery.

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