The residents, landowners, and advocates for the PA Wilds, demand the immediate stop of any proposed data center development in Tioga County & the surrounding landscape of the Pennsylvania Wilds.

This is not an appropriate region for development. This is damaging industrialization activity for one of Pennsylvania’s last truly wild greenscape regions.

This Project Represents a Potential Risk to the Health, Environment, and Character of Tioga County.

 

1. It Will Permanently Damage the Environment.

Data centers are not neutral infrastructure. They require substantial land clearing, massive amounts of water consumption, and nonstop energy use.

Forests will be clear cut. Wildlife will be distributed. Watersheds will be stressed.

Once this damage is done, it is irreversible.

“Even a mid-sized data center consumes as much water as a small town, while larger ones require up to 5 million gallons of water every day—as much as a city of 50,000 people.” (Gorey)

“These facilities consume significant electricity (sometimes over 2 MWh, equal to a small town). If the local grid relies on fossil fuels, this contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions.” (Nguyen and Green)

“Past examples in Michigan cities such as Flint and Benton Harbor show how overbuilt systems saddled residents with high costs, debt and ongoing maintenance that may lead to public safety challenges. ”(Looby)

 

2. It will Disrupt the Local Economy

Tioga County & the PA Wilds Landscape depends heavily on tourism - including outdoor recreation, spectacular natural attractions, and the serenity of nature in this greenscape. Visitors come for dark skies at Cherry Springs, quiet landscapes in the PA Grand Canyon, and truly wild nature—not industrial complexes, noise pollution, and transmission corridors.

“Data centers are lit at night for security purposes and often use LED lighting, which can significantly impact night skies, especially in rural areas where natural darkness is normally preserved.” (“Facts about the Gigaland Data Center Project - the Piedmont Environmental Council”)

 

3. It Exploits Rural Communities

Projects like this are routinely pushed into underfunded rural areas under the promise of economic development.

“ Local elected officials are frequently rushed into hasty sprints to negotiate complicated power, permitting, and financial incentives with community benefits often tacked on at the end of the discussions only as a supposed sweetener or to counter community unease.” (Muro et al.)

 

In reality, they bring limited temporary jobs - typically outsourcing jobs while extracting the local resources; land, water, and power. All for outside corporate gain.

The burden stays here. The profit does not.

“—the intense water demand, the higher electricity bills, the air pollution from backup generators—will be dispersed more regionally, including to areas that won’t see any new tax revenue.” (Gorey)

 

4. It Puts the People at Risk

These facilities are already having lasting impacts on communities across the United States. Not only are they polluting natural landscapes, they could further impact locals and tourists who value Tioga County and the PA Wilds.

“In May 2023, a Bitcoin mining center—a type of energy-hungry data center—popped up in Greenbrier, Arkansas, not far from a residential area. Nearby residents have complained about the 24/7 noise coming from the center, which is leading to health problems, including increased blood pressure and anxiety. The high-velocity fans used to cool computers inside the mine generate a constant hum that can be heard miles away in such a rural setting.

Since the arrival of a nearby bitcoin mining center, dozens of residents of Granbury, Texas, have also complained of medical ailments, including vertigo, nausea, high blood pressure, migraines, fluid coming from the ears, and insomnia. Neighbors attribute this spike in health issues to excessive noise pollution from the bitcoin mine. Sitting less than 100 yards away from a mobile home park, the sprawling facility hosts 60,000 computers and associated cooling and power systems, emitting noise at all hours of the day and night.” (Yañez-Barnuevo)

 

Our Message Is Clear-

Tioga County and the PA Wilds Landscape are not an appropriate region for industrial expansion and exploitation.

We will not stand by while corporations attempt to industrialize our forests, drain our finite resources, and permanently alter our home.

Stop the proposed data center.

Protect Tioga County. Keep the PA Wilds - Wild.