Clyde enacts moratorium as broader data center fight builds

The tiny Haywood County Town of Clyde has joined a growing number of Western North Carolina communities by formalizing its opposition to data centers through a 12-month moratorium, but with limited jurisdiction beyond its borders and the possibility of preemption by Raleigh looming, Clyde knows it can’t go it alone.

Swain public hearing brings moratorium support, data center opposition

A March 31 Swain County public hearing for a data center moratorium drew a crowd of around 140 people, a turnout proportionate to 12,900 residents in Wake County, confronting commissioners to plead their case. 

Attendees filled the six rows facing commissioners, leaving a couple dozen straining to watch the event behind the open double-doors. All had shown up to be part of the conversation about hyper-scale data centers and out of concern for about how these facilities could impact every aspect of their livelihoods. 

A hard no to high-tech: Canton passes data center moratorium

As the sun set over Canton on Feb. 11, the scene at the town’s makeshift municipal building more closely resembled that of a trendy big-city nightclub. More than 100 people had lined up outside, hoping to join the other 49 people who’d pushed the modular double-wide’s fire code to its absolute limit by making it inside. Their minds weren’t focused on drinks or dancing, but instead on data — Big Data, and its effect on small towns. 

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