xAI Faces Legal Threat Over Memphis Data Center Pollution

Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence firm xAI is facing legal action over air pollution from the gas-fired turbines it uses to power its Memphis computer farm. 

Musk’s AI firm xAI received a 60-day notice of intent to sue for violations of the Clean Air Act on Tuesday from the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) over its “Colossus” AI datacenter in Memphis, Tennessee.

The potential lawsuit, on behalf of the oldest civil rights group in America, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, centers on dozens of natural gas turbines that the firm installed to power the facility instead of waiting for a grid connection.

According to SELC, these turbines are operating without proper air quality permits and are emitting harmful pollutants, including nitrogen oxides and formaldehyde, violating the Clean Air Act.

“Over the past year, xAI has installed and operated at least 35 combustion turbines and other sources of air pollution at the Colossus site without ever obtaining the necessary preconstruction or operating air permits,” the notice reads.

Formal requests ignored

The notice also claimed that xAI failed to implement “Best Available Control Technology,” such as selective catalytic reduction to limit emissions, another Clean Air Act requirement for major sources.

Related: Amazon to invest $13B in Australian AI data center infrastructure

“We have on four different occasions sent formal requests to the local health department asking for them to use their authority to enforce the law,” SELC senior attorney Patrick Anderson told Newsweek, adding, “Obviously, that hasn’t happened.”

Bad air quality lingers, civil rights group says

The Colossus datacenter is located at a former electronic manufacturing facility in South Memphis near a predominantly Black community called Boxtown, where air quality in the area is already diminished by other industrial emissions.

“We are prepared to combat environmental racism at every turn,” the NAACP said on X. 

The civil rights organization seeks injunctive relief, civil penalties, fees, and litigation costs. 

Cointelegraph contacted xAI and the NAACP for further comments but did not receive an immediate response. 

Data center demand surging

Musk’s xAI is building a second, larger facility called Colossus 2 in Memphis, requiring at least 1 gigawatt of power.

Data center demand is rapidly increasing, driven largely by the growth of cloud computing and AI, with the US Department of Energy projecting that it could double or triple by 2028. 

By 2030, data centers will need $6.7 trillion in global investments to meet the surging demand, research firm McKinsey reported in May.

“AI’s record-shattering demand is finding limitations in the supply of data centers and electricity as AI companies struggle to reach profitability amid mounting costs. Institutions estimate AI will drive a 165% increase in the demand for data centers by 2030,” Nick Ruck, director at LVRG Research, told Cointelegraph. 

Amazon recently signed a deal with Talen Energy for nuclear energy to power its AI data centers in Pennsylvania through the year 2042. It also signalled plans to invest more than $13 billion in Australia’s AI and cloud infrastructure. 

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