This is the second of three articles about Michigan communities organizing to stop the construction of energy-intensive computing facilities.

Early this year, Augusta Charter Township resident Travis Matts had seen a few headlines about the problems data centers caused in towns across the country. He thought the impacts on water, air and utility bills sounded awful, but it also seemed like a far-away issue.

Until it suddenly hit home in May.

That is when Matts learned, through his group of volunteers that cleans up area litter, that a data center was proposed for an 822-acre property largely in Augusta Township, a small farming community southeast of Ann Arbor. Township leadership fully supported it.

• ICN Weekly Saturdays Our #1 newsletter delivers the week’s climate and energy news –

See Full Page