Ohio is in the middle of a data center boom — and there are no rules to manage it.

The state is now home to 203 data centers, placing it fifth in the country. More than 130 of them are in the Columbus area alone. These facilities are massive consumers of electricity and water, and their numbers are growing fast. American Electric Power (AEP), the state's largest utility, projects that total power demand in Ohio could nearly double by 2030 — driven largely by data center expansion.

The problem is that Ohio's energy laws are working against clean solutions. Current state law makes it nearly impossible to build new solar and wind farms, while making it easier to approve new natural gas plants. As a result, data centers are turning to gas to meet their energy needs. "Building out more gas infrastructure will lock in our dependency on gas for another 30 years, with implications for the environment, for our health, and for our energy bills," according to Rachel Kutzley, lead author of a May 2026 report by Save Ohio Parks and a board member of the organization.

That 30-year lock-in isn't inevitable. It's a policy choice — and it can be changed.

Save Ohio Parks is calling on the Ohio General Assembly and the Governor to place a moratorium on approving new data centers until meaningful regulations are in place. Those regulations should require data centers to meet or offset their full energy demands using solar, wind, and battery storage. They should require data centers to adopt best energy efficiency practices, pay their fair share of grid modernization costs, and publicly report on the water they consume.

This isn't about stopping technological progress. It's about making sure that progress doesn't come at the expense of Ohio residents who will pay higher energy bills, breathe dirtier air, and watch their water supplies shrink — while some of the wealthiest companies in the world operate under no rules at all.

Sign this petition to urge Ohio lawmakers to pause new data center approvals and put commonsense clean energy standards in place before the next facility is approved.