Missouri protesters seek to suspend AI data center growth

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

The group No Mo Dirty Data Centers will hold a rally Wednesday afternoon at the State Capitol to urge Missourians to have a say in the expansion of AI data centers across the state.

The rally will be in the Capitol Rotunda at 1 p.m., followed by a march to the Governor's mansion at 3 p.m.

Protesters are demanding a moratorium on data centers until real protections are in place. During the rally, the group will hold its own public hearing on the rapid expansion of data centers.

According to a press release, the hearing will put a human face on the debate, with farmers, landowners and everyday Missourians sharing how data center development will affect their property, livelihoods, water, utility bills and communities.

This rally comes after months of community pushback against an Amazon data center in Montgomery County that officially broke ground in June. Water use is one complaint shared by residents at public meetings for the project. Other complaints include the high power loads required by data centers and the use of productive farmland for the project.

There are now discussions about a proposed data center development in Callaway County. Local officials describe the multi-billion-dollar development as the largest private investment in Callaway County history.

The project includes two data center buildings of about 800,000 square feet each, creating a sizable new industrial and technology footprint in what is now a rural area. According to Crusoe Director of Economic Development Morgan Alu, each building would have about 204 megawatts of power, with the entire campus capped at 500 megawatts.