[fragmede]

The problem these days is lack of nuance. It should seem entirely reasonable to be pro-datacenters-if-they're-done-right, but it feels like there are only two sides to any issue. Gas turbine whine noise isn't coming from the data center, it's being used to power the data center, but the camp is either pro data center or not, and fuck any nuance.

[ninjalanternshk]

The problem is people keep trying to regulate businesses by name instead of by the effects they have.

If we had regulations on noise, vibration, emissions, water use, electromagnetic radiation, whatever else, then it wouldn’t matter what people tried to build — if it fits within the guidelines great, otherwise back to the drawing board.

Putting “data center” in your ordinances is as lazy and ineffective as putting “abattoir.”

[altcognito]

> If we had regulations on noise, vibration, emissions, water use, electromagnetic radiation, whatever else, then it wouldn’t matter what people tried to build

We certainly do! It’s just often overridden and ignored for these companies and data centers

[quickthrowman]

> If we had regulations on noise, vibration, emissions, water use, electromagnetic radiation, whatever else, then it wouldn’t matter what people tried to build — if it fits within the guidelines great, otherwise back to the drawing board.

Sane jurisdictions do have regulations regarding these things. Not all jurisdictions are sane, some of them are run by people who sell out their residents.

Suburbs and cities around me all have noise regulations, my state has its own pollution regulations, and the local water utilities don’t hook up customers that stress the system. Unfortunately there are places like Texas, Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi that don’t give two shits about their citizens and let companies run temporary natural gas turbines permanently and all kinds of other nonsense.

[Forgeties79]

Because the reality is while we all debate the nuances companies just do whatever they want, and it’s usually whatever offloads the most issues to the public because it saves them more money.

[__egb__]

Maybe the lack of nuance is due to learning, through decades of experience, that the assumption “it won’t be done right” can be baked in.

[wongarsu]

So people have a decades-long expectation that local government will fail them?

This does sound plausible, but it's also pretty sad and not a sign of a healthy democracy

[jfengel]

I'm hard pressed to think of anyone who believes that America has a healthy democracy. Even those most recently elected continually claim that democracy is under threat.