xAI · Donald Trump · Jerome Powell · The Verge
The SELC and NAACP threatened to sue xAI for installing unpermitted gas turbines at the site the same year
Compiled by KHAO Editorial — aggregated from 1 source. See llms.txt for citation guidance.
◌ Single Source
SELC was one of nearly 200 health and environmental groups that filed comments last Friday asking the EPA to withdraw its proposal on New Source Review.
Key facts
- Colossus 1, xAI’s massive data center in Tennessee that the company billed as the “ most powerful AI training system yet,” applied for a minor source permit in 2025
- SELC was one of nearly 200 health and environmental groups that filed comments last Friday asking the EPA to withdraw its proposal on New Source Review
- You can see why that would be so interesting to an administration that wants to rush through the construction of data centers,” says Keri Powell, senior attorney and air program leader
- As new data centers face growing backlash from neighboring communities, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is about to make it harder for people to weigh in on any pollution those centers
Summary
As new data centers face growing backlash from neighboring communities, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is about to make it harder for people to weigh in on any pollution those centers create. The EPA plans to toss out a federal rule requiring public notice and an opportunity to comment when certain industrial sites apply for an air permit. “You can see why that would be so interesting to an administration that wants to rush through the construction of data centers,” says Keri Powell, senior attorney and air program leader at the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC). The EPA’s proposed changes apply to a permitting process that’s been in place since the 1970s called New Source Review that applies to a wide range of facilities, from landfills and paper mills to power plant expansions. In July, the EPA announced that it would eliminate the federal public participation requirement for a large set of polluters and place that burden on states.