A top priority of the Trump administration is making our nation the “AI Capital of the World.” But the data centers needed to support artificial intelligence (AI) require enormous amounts of energy and, if powered by fossil fuels, can release significant harmful pollution, including cancer-causing benzene and formaldehyde.
Our leaders in Congress must commit to building a future that includes safe, healthy, and sustainable AI infrastructure. Will you join Moms in urging your lawmakers to introduce legislation to protect our families from fossil fuel-powered data centers?
Tell Congress: Protect Families From Dangerous Data Center Air Pollution
I’ve seen firsthand the damage a massive AI data center can cause in a community. I live in Memphis, where last year Elon Musk opened his xAI supercomputer facility, called Colossus, in the historically Black—and historically overburdened with industrial air pollution—Boxtown neighborhood.
Within months of Colossus turning on the 35 heavily polluting gas turbines that power it, my 12-year-old son ended up in urgent care and his doctor’s office four times because he needed a nebulizer to help him breathe. And we weren’t alone. On one visit, five children in the waiting area were there for wheezing, and one had to be transported to the hospital by ambulance.
I don’t know for sure what caused my son’s asthma to flare. But I do know our children are most at risk from fossil-fuel-powered data centers’ toxic pollution. This pollution is linked to not just asthma attacks, but heart attacks, neurological issues, and cancer.
Despite recent growth in renewable energy technology, two-thirds of the additional electricity needed to power AI data centers is projected to come from expensive and dirty fossil fuels—unless strong, affordable clean energy requirements are put in place. We need to protect our families from bearing the costs of data center development infrastructure, as their massive energy demands drive costly grid expansions and higher electricity bills for families.
That’s where you come in. Add your voice to Moms’ across the country who are calling for data centers in our communities to be powered by clean renewable energy and subject to strong clean air protections. We need safeguards to protect our families’ health and future.
Tell Congress: Protect Families From Dangerous Data Center Air Pollution