North Franklin Township, PA adopted preemptive data center zoning ordinances — no current proposals, but supervisors cited a 1,400-acre tract in nearby South Strabane as a prompt. Setbacks: 1,000 feet from schools, hospitals, churches; 500 feet from residences. A model for communities that want rules in place before developers arrive. (Observer-Reporter)
Wärtsilä received a 412-MW gas engine power order for a hyperscale data center in Ohio — its fourth U.S. data center order, bringing total engine capacity sold to U.S. data centers over 1.6 GW. The plant will operate off-grid, with commercial operation expected early 2028. (GlobeNewswire)
Kenyon College student paper examines Ohio's data center vulnerability. Ohio ranks sixth nationally in planned data centers and fourth for currently operating ones, with a high concentration targeting rural areas. Students along the Columbus-to-Gambier corridor report farmland being replaced by construction sites. A rare example of college press covering the issue. (UWIRE / Kenyon Collegian)
EPA launched Water Reuse Action Plan 2.0, explicitly framing water reuse as supporting AI and data center growth. Administrator Lee Zeldin positioned the plan alongside “American energy dominance.” (Targeted News Service)
Habitat Energy expanded into PJM, the largest U.S. wholesale electricity market serving 13 states including Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The UK-based battery storage optimizer manages over 1.8 GW and cited PJM's growing battery storage pipeline. (ENP Newswire)
Technion researchers warn AI data centers pose fundamental grid stability challenge. Global data center count has nearly tripled in five years to ~1,100. Demand projected to reach 122 gigawatts within five years — enough to power roughly 91.5 million homes. Key finding: AI training workloads produce sharp demand swings that can stress grid infrastructure in ways traditional industrial loads do not. (Energies journal)
Virginia Tech researcher confirms 90% of data center water use is offsite — from power generation, not direct cooling. Communities focused only on onsite water use are missing the larger impact. (Targeted News Service)