Cherry famous is way better than data center famous

Posted on by farlane
Leelanau Tart Cherries Ready for Harvest by Andrew McFarlane

Last night on Facebook, Erin Brockovich shared:

Michigan, the state famous for its cherries, has been reaching out for months with concerns about proposed AI data centers in local communities.

I’ve heard from residents in Marshall, Saline Township, Lowell, Dowagiac, Dorr, and many other towns. People are very engaged and asking important questions. The issues being raised echo what we’ve seen nationwide: water impacts/rights, utility costs rising, 765kV transmission lines, rezoning disputes, NDAs, zero transparency, among other issues.

She adds that she appreciates everyone who has shared information through the Brockovich AI Data Center Reporting website. They are working to raise community awareness nationwide about the fast-moving wave of data centers & how communities are working to block them or shape the impact on their water and power resources and the the fabric of their communities.

And yes, she is THAT Erin Brockovich.

This photo is mine, taken July 5, 2007 on the Leelanau Peninsula and processed by me. I decided to use my own photo so people aren’t being mean to someone else on behalf of data centers. If you are thinking of being a champion for these strange & secretive facilities that somehow have to be everywhere and also guarded by robot dogs, I will remind you that data centers are impacting water health & access or that datacenters increase power prices & reduce power availability. That’s probably why 7 in 10 people Americans don’t want a datacenter in their community, and they are strongly opposed by nearly half of us.

Please consider all of that before you uncork your brainless “how come you still use computers & the internet” attack on a person who has been using the internet to share stories since you had to capitalize Internet. If you do want to ride for Artificial Intelligence, I encourage you to educate yourself about the Facts & Myths around AI datacenters.

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Michigan data centers coming at a “surreal” pace

Posted on by farlane
Data Base by Terry Johnston

Data Base by Terry Johnston

I’ve been wanting to share The Gander’s Michigan Data Center Tracker (embedded below) for a while now. It documents how despite organized opposition in several dozen communities, more than 30 AI-related projects have been slated for Michigan since 2024.

Last week mLive editor John Hiner published an engaging editorial in which he observed that datacenters are coming at a surreal pace & Michigan policy makers need to catch up fast. It says in part:

The numbers alone boggle the mind. The project, dubbed “The Barn,” sits on roughly 1,000 acres. It will include about 1.7 million square feet of enclosed space for computers – the equivalent of 11 Costco warehouses under one roof. It’s expected to require 1.4 gigawatts of electricity – enough to power 1 million homes.

Residents in Saline Township, Lyon Township, Van Buren Township and elsewhere have raised concerns about electricity demand, water use, land use and quality of life. National polling suggests roughly seven in 10 Americans do not want to live near a data center. Some opposition is rooted in the specifics of individual projects. Some reflects a broader unease about artificial intelligence itself – what it may mean for jobs, creativity and society.

(mLive MLive investigative reporter Lucas) Smolcic Larson believes those concerns deserve to be taken seriously. But he also sees something larger at work: “A sort of power and information imbalance … where you’ve got a tiny community up against Google, which is one of the largest companies in the world.”

The debate is often framed as being for data centers or against them. That’s too simplistic. They are rapidly becoming essential infrastructure for a digital economy running on cloud computing and AI. The more important question is whether Michigan has built a public conversation – and a regulatory framework – that can keep up with the speed of development, while addressing that imbalance between mega-corporations and ordinary citizens.

It’s clear after watching Gov. Whitmer stand shoulder to shoulder with Sam Altman as they cut the ribbon on the controversial Barn project as she said “We’re used to people saying ‘f— no,’ and then doing it anyway” that Michigan has not come close to creating anything approaching public dialog beyond “We don’t want to lose data centers to Ohio.”

It’s been a while since I’ve featured a photo from Terry aka powerbooktrance. I hope he’s doing well! See more in his Reflective Windows gallery on Flickr.

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