Washington has a data center problem
For years, Grant County sat on enough clean hydroelectricity to power more than a million homes. Then came the tech companies, interested in the cheap and plentiful electricity. They built data centers all over rural Washington to help fuel the modern internet.
The data centers use so much energy that in the next few years, Washington state could struggle to keep up with local electricity needs.
Washington’s new governor, Bob Ferguson, has taken notice.
Last week, he signed an executive order to evaluate data centers’ impact on energy use, state tax revenue, and job creation.
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