[Ed note: My Southborough accepts signed letters to the editor submitted by Southborough residents. Letters may be emailed to mysouthborough@gmail.com.
The following letter is from Peter Kahn.]
To the Editor:
Imagine a warehouse the size of a football field, filled wall to wall with containers, each packed tight with computers. They generate enormous heat requiring industrial cooling consuming electricity and water. Water leaves the system full of algaecides, biocides, and corrosion inhibitors ensuring lower costs for the operator and leaving a legacy which we pay for with our lives and our town budget. 99.999% reliability and controlling operation costs act as chief drivers for the firm running this datacenter.
With downtime unacceptable, diesel and gas turbine backup systems sit on site as well. Far from only used during a power outage, these run whenever it makes financial sense to do so. If electricity prices rise in midday, those gas turbines spin up with the noise and air pollution as our cost. The operating firm makes money and we face health risks. This isn’t a clean tech company, this is heavy-industry supporting tech companies.
I started in the tech sector in 1995 and have seen many boom and bust cycles. Over and over again the bubble pops and businesses fail. When datacenters fail, communities find that they pick up cleanup costs. When we seek legal redress we may find a shell company, or an army of lawyers who bury the town in discovery. Stopping this before they break ground remains our only point of strength.
There’s nothing hypothetical about these risks. They have been harming communities for decades.
Brittany Heights – Chandler, Arizona: When a data center moved in late 2014, residents began hearing a constant humming. They complained. They petitioned. They organized. After a decade-long fight, the hum remains. What is done cannot be magically undone.
Memphis: In 2024 xAI announced a data center and built it in 122 days. The turbines started running prior to permits being filed. Before anyone could ask questions, the system was operational. By the time we raise our voices, they’ve already won.
Boardman, Oregon: A town of 4,000 people, Boardman saw data centers starting in 2011. By 2022, the county declared a public health emergency over drinking water. A survey of 70 wells found 68 violated the federal nitrate limit. Of 30 homes visited, 25 residents recently had miscarriages and six lost a kidney. Amazon denied wrongdoing, paid out $20.5 million to settle with residents, and the wells remain contaminated.
Data Centers promise good jobs and tax revenue. Their track record tells a different story: rules bent or ignored, communities poisoned, and cleanup costs left for us. This is our home, not their trash dump.
Say no to data centers. They are bad for us and bad for the town.
Peter Kahn
43 Highland St
