[mhb]

Other than data centers being the bogeyman du jour, why isn't the bill written more generally to address potential impacts of any large new business that is anticipated to create effects like noise, pollution, infrastructure requirements, etc.

It's not already required for proposed businesses to address these issues?

[threwrfaway]

Data centers growth is consuming resources far beyond other industrial users.

Aluminum smelters use a lot of DC power, but smelters aren't popping up like VC fertilized mushrooms.

[mhb]

Not really the point. Should we have separate laws for stealing from grocery stores, electronics stores and drug stores because they have different characteristics?

[threwrfaway]

It's exactly the point! Data Centers have a unique capability to damage property, society and the environment.

A new aluminum smelter, dirty as they are, wont double your electric bill and will employ far more people than a datacenter (other than ex-marines w/ shoot to kill orders, who works there?)

[defrost]

I'm in agreement with you on the jobs .. but power draw wise??

  An aluminium smelter uses an immense amount of electricity, requiring about 14,000 kWh per metric ton of aluminium produced. Because it takes so much power—roughly equivalent to powering a mid-sized city like Nashville or Boston—electricity can make up to 40% of the total production cost.

That's quoted from a google AI summary query, sure - but I've had family members work the S.Australian smelters and they're beasts for power consumption.

[threwrfaway]

My dad's first job as an ECE was getting power for an Al smelter. Im quite aware of Al smelters.

I chose it as an example because they're crazy power hungry. The other classical examples of high electrical use are NH3 fertilizer plants.

But! We're not building hundreds of Al smelters all across the country. Nor are we building hundreds of NH3 plants.

We should be, seeing how a significant amount of our Al and NH3 is locked in the ME, but alas; we've decided to keep a structural, supply-side inflation that will devastate any family making less than $400k rather than divert capital from the surveillance state and chat bots.

At most, there's a market for two Al and NH3 plants in the country potentially employing thousands of lower middle class folks.

[mhb]

So why doesn't the way New York addresses new aluminum smelter businesses apply to new data centers?

[threwrfaway]

Well, let's use discernment. Let's also add NH3 plants since those are also electricity hogs.

1. There's no VC distorted market building hundreds of them. At most two Al or NH3 will ever be built again in this country.

2. We need Al and NH3 in a way that we dont need data centers. Most of the protein in your body comes from synthetic NH3. Al has slashed CO2 emissions in industry.

There's a Middle Eastern fertilizer and Al crisis that's going to devastate our economies. Al and NH3 should have been on-shored 20 years ago.

3. Its already impossible to build NH3 or Al plants in NY due to other regulatory laws that target Al and NH3.

So, NY state in its (/s) infinite wisdom (/s) has realized that New Yorkers need to eat more than it needs to feed a surveillance state.

[mhb]

That clears things up. You want to use the cudgel of the state's power regarding zoning issues to address ventures which you find morally objectionable in some way.