A controversial project in Southern New Mexico has raised a question being asked across the nation as artificial intelligence increases demand for high-powered data centers: Is the net impact of these facilities on surrounding communities good, bad or somewhere in between?

Lawmakers heard it all at a Wednesday meeting of the Water and Natural Resources Committee in Artesia that stretched beyond its anticipated end time as state legislators put in their two cents on Project Jupiter and similar projects around the state.

State Economic Development Department division Director Mark Roper said data centers had been a “financial boon” for the state. He pointed to Meta’s longstanding facility in Los Lunas, which he said grew the population, increased tax revenue and brought benefits to other b

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