Abigail's Statement on the
Box Elder Data Center
The Stratos project is a hyper-scale data center that is set to be built at the north end of the Great Salt Lake in Box Elder county. It is set to cover 40,000 acres of land, and consume 9 GW of power, nearly double the usage of the entire state. It will be the largest of its kind in the nation.
The proposed data center in Box Elder County raises significant concerns about water supply, air quality, biodiversity, local infrastructure, and community health.There has not yet been an environmental impact study to evaluate the long-term consequences of this project.
At a time when Utah faces severe drought conditions and rapidly declining lake levels, any project of this scale deserves careful review and public scrutiny.
This project was proposed, planned, and approved in record time without meaningful public input. The lack of transparency, combined with growing concerns about how individuals involved in the approval process may personally benefit from the project, leaves many Utahns with reasonable doubts about current leadership’s ability to responsibly steward Utah’s natural resources for the public good and future generations.
Key Environmental Concerns
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Fossil fuel power use — The center is projected to consume roughly twice the amount of power currently used by the entire state, generated primarily through burning natural gas.
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Water use — There are no existing examples of closed-loop cooling systems at this scale operating without impacts to local water resources.
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Carbon emissions — Burning natural gas at this scale is projected to increase Utah’s carbon emissions by roughly 50%.
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Warming — Scientists predict the combined heat from power production, energy consumption, and increased emissions could raise local temperatures by several degrees.
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Ecological disruption — Increased temperatures, water strain, and sound and light pollution threaten local ecosystems, food webs, and migratory wildlife.
