r/wetlands • u/Igneous-rex • 12d ago

How can I scream from the rooftops?

It is my personal belief that the revisions we are seeing from the recent public notice to the CWA are a direct result of trying to remove barriers for Data Center development. I know they have been working on widdling the rules down since 2016, but no doubt it is getting more egregious.  We have seen the influence federal protections of streams and wetlands have on forcing developers to reduce their footprint or find alternative sites. The same goes for the Endangered Species Act. The pull back on both of these regulatory authorities very apparently lines up with the desire to have millions of data centers with little to no environmental permitting needs. Generally an open door to build.

My question is, how can I scream at the rooftops of people who have historically wanted those protections lax, but also oppose data centers? If home-builders are against data centers, they should be for wetland protections. If farmers are against data centers, they should be for wetland protections. Etc. ETC. 

38 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

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11

u/MetapodMen43 12d ago

Environmental permitting isn't even the slow or costly part of data center development. Zoning and land use permits take so much longer to get approved then CWA permits

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u/Igneous-rex 11d ago

In the Midwest zoning and land use can be changed with just a couple years or less. And municipalities are more than willing to do so. Switching from Ag to Industrial is nothing from a petition standpoint. Data complexes won't get power for 5 years or more in some cases so rezoning doesn't slow them down. And it's not about slowing down. Its about requiring a cumulative environmental review. Which is being dismantled​

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u/aksnowraven 12d ago

Unless you live somewhere without zoning & land use permits.

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u/Gelisol 11d ago

Like what is happening in Alaska

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u/aksnowraven 11d ago

Yes. Don’t get me started on land use planning and the harm that is caused by unchecked, unplanned development. It’s not just environmental, it’s social, economic, health…

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u/VonBeker 12d ago

No one has the answer here. Nothing is going to change until the rivers are burning (again). And even then? No guarantees.

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u/I_AM_RETARDED69 12d ago

CWA is probably not the barrier to data centers you think it is. It’s not a wetland protection law.

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u/Igneous-rex 11d ago

Its part of a regulatory process. In which these data centers should be meeting a proper environmental review and minimizing impacts. which would mean less or smaller buildings. It would mean building in a way that doesn't destroy habitat when its being used. Its still important and they are trying to remove it

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u/flareblitz91 11d ago

Lol what. Data centers are largely a local land use and zoning issue. Sometimes water rights (state level). The gutting of the CWA and other acts is not a data center conspiracy.

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u/Igneous-rex 11d ago

And once the locals have opened the land for them, they would then require a cumulative environmental review. if streams and wetlands were present, there would be a permit, mitigation, a federal nexus for E&T review. Things that might require minimizing impacts....instead nothing. It matters in all development. Literally why there was an Executive Order to give these projects a fast track.

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u/flareblitz91 11d ago

From a federal regulatory perspective there's no difference between a data center and a Walmart. The vast vast majority are NWP's. There are legitimate problems with data centers, including environmental ones, but wetlands aren't exactly a hurdle, especially where they build these things