Rural America is resisting the surge in data center construction

Rural America is resisting the surge in data center construction

In Tazewell County, Illinois, Michael Deppert depends on a natural pool of water beneath the sandy soils of his farm to irrigate the pumpkins, corn, and soybeans growing in his fields. So when a data center was proposed about eight miles away, he feared it would tap the same aquifer, potentially eroding crop yields and profits. Deppert, who is also the president of the local farm bureau lobby group, says locals were also “nervous” about how a da…