FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. — Fairfax County wants to put in guardrails for data centers.
For several years communities across Northern Virginia have expressed outrage about the explosion of data centers in the area. From Prince William County to Fauquier County, neighbors have tried to grapple with the explosion of centers being built.
It’s not going away anytime soon.
According to the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, Northern Virginia is home to around 50% of the U.S.’s data centers. It is estimated that roughly 20% of the world’s data flows through them on any given day.
“We have 11 in Fairfax County, but they are tiny by comparison to the jurisdictions around us,” said Jeff McKay, chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
Fairfax County has a relatively small data center footprint, but with five new centers on the way, county leaders want to step up regulations.
“We had been treating [data centers] like telecommunication facilities. As if they are phone switching stations,” McKay explained.
McKay has asked the county’s staff to examine the environmental concerns, power grid issues, and best practices for data centers across the country. Then enact regulations for zoning.
“[Regulations] that enables them to be built but only strict criteria and only in places where it’s appropriate,” McKay said.
McKay wants the guidance from the county’s research back by the end of the year. He hopes the new regulations the county writes can be used across Northern Virginia.
“We hope we can come up with some model language that other jurisdictions can use as well,” he said.
McKay added that the issue of data center growth isn’t going away. Virginia sees the data centers as an integral part of the 21st century economy. He and the board of supervisors are not opposed to them. However, they do want to see responsible growth.
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