By Luisa Loi
La Conner Community News

Community members who spoke at July 14’s public hearing on Skagit County’s moratorium on data centers were overwhelmingly supportive of the ban, which blocks the county from accepting permit applications for data centers for six months.

Data centers are currently not defined nor regulated by the Skagit County Code. The moratorium defines data centers as structures that are larger than 2,000 square feet or have a total anticipated electrical load of 2 megawatts or greater.

The moratorium, approved on June 1 and set to expire on Dec. 1, gives staff and officials time to develop new rules to regulate the zoning of these structures outside of incorporated cities and towns in a way that is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan, according to Senior Deputy of Natural Resources Will Honea, who told attendees he is unsure if the code updates will be completed by then but assured the moratorium can be extended in six-month increments as necessary.

Planning and Development Services has already been working on some proposed regulations, which Honea said will be discussed in future hearings with the Planning Commission and the Board of County Commissioners.

Among Honea’s greatest concerns were the impacts on Skagit’s water supply and the risk that local farmers will have less water for their operations.

Speaking on behalf of himself, Skagit PUD Commissioner Andrew Miller said he opposes the development of large scale data centers in Skagit as they would clash with the county’s commitment to support a strong agricultural economy, as Skagit is ill suited for structures like data centers that require lots of water, power and land.

Lora Claus, executive director of Skagitonians to Preserve Farmland, stated that Washington ranks 50th in the nation when it comes to farm profitability.

“Protecting water is not just about protecting farmers. It is about protecting our ability to produce food, supporting the continued recovery of salmon, and maintaining ecological diversity,” said Mikala Staples Hughes, president of the Western Washington Agricultural Association.

Attendees also mentioned the loud noise produced by data centers, their high energy demand (which could drive up costs for local consumers), the increase in truck traffic resulting from construction of the centers, disturbances to wildlife, and changes to community’s rural and agricultural character, as well as ethical concerns associated with artificial intelligence, such as mass surveillance and the replacement of human workers.

While there has been a push for regulations at the state and federal levels, Honea said a “one-size-fits-all” fix may not be effective with Skagit’s unique landscape and values.

“If you don’t get ahead of this issue and regulate and limit data centers in alignment with our comprehensive plan, no one else can or will,” he said.

Luisa Loi is a general assignment reporter for La Conner Community News.