Edinburg, Texas
Residents in Edinburg took the opportunity at Tuesdays Commission meeting to voice that they do not want data centers in their city. During the public comment session, speakers Joe Rodriguez and Marilyn Lara urged the council to reconsider development, citing serious concerns about increased cancer risks, grid instability, and water scarcity in the Rio Grande Valley. Drawing comparisons to the "Colossus" supercomputer in Tennessee and the environmental impact of Starbase in Brownsville, residents questioned who would bear the financial liability for potential grid failures and emphasized that the promise of tech innovation should not come at the expense of community health.
Despite "closed-loop" cooling claims, fears remain that data centers will tap into the scarce RGV water supply, alongside concerns of rolling blackouts and rate increases to support the crypto/AI load.
Notably, because this feedback was delivered during the public comment section, the City Council was legally restricted from responding to the speakers during the meeting.