Kevin O'Leary Scales Back Utah Data Center Plans Amid Local Pushback
Billionaire Kevin O'Leary agrees to downsize his massive 40,000-acre Utah data center project in response to mounting pressure from residents and activists.
Data Center Plans Amid Local Pushback">
Kevin O'Leary, star of the popular reality TV show Shark Tank, has agreed to significantly reduce the size of his planned data center in Utah. The billionaire investor will remove 19,430 acres from the project, which was initially slated to span 40,000 acres. The data center, dubbed Project Stratos, is located in and around the Locomotive Springs Waterfowl Management Area.
The decision comes after weeks of mounting pressure from local residents and activists, who had raised concerns about the project's potential environmental impact. Utah Senate President J. Stuart Adams had called on O'Leary to slash the size of the project by 75 percent, which would have reduced it to approximately 10,000 acres.
While O'Leary's revised plan does not meet that target, it still represents a significant reduction in the project's scope. In a letter to Adams, O'Leary confirmed that he will scale back the project's size, although the exact details of the revised plan were not disclosed. The change in plans was first reported by local affiliate ABC4.
Adams had also requested that O'Leary implement technology to minimize water consumption at the data center, although it is unclear whether this request was included in O'Leary's revised proposal. The development had sparked intense debate among local stakeholders, with some arguing that it would bring much-needed economic growth to the region, while others expressed concerns about its potential impact on the environment and local wildlife. O'Leary's decision to downsize the project may help to alleviate some of these concerns, but it remains to be seen how the revised plan will be received by the community.
The revised project details were not made available, and it is unclear what specific measures O'Leary will take to address concerns about water consumption and environmental impact. As the project moves forward, local residents and activists will likely be keeping a close eye on its development.
Source: The Verge