HOPE HULL, Ala. – Lowndes County’s Route 37 is peppered with signs opposing a proposed hyperscale data center in the area.
“SAVE OUR LAND,” the signs read.
Cloverleaf Infrastructure’s proposed Project Red Clay would be massive, and opponents have said the community has insufficient information about the project.
Addressing the county residents’ mobilization against the data center, former U.S. Senator and Democratic gubernatorial nominee Doug Jones spoke to a crowd of around 50 inside Beulah Primitive Baptist Church in Hope Hull on Wednesday afternoon.
Jones has been very public with his distrust of data centers, repeatedly calling for a one-year moratorium on new data center construction. He says this would allow communities time to set up guardrails for the massive facilities.
Jones argues such guardrails should not only be put in place statewide but also empower county commissions and municipalities to make their own policies about data centers.
Drawing on Project Red Clay as an example, Jones said that Alabama as a whole is too quick to “chase the almighty dollar” and too often keeps community members out of the loop.
“I’ve never seen an issue explode on the political scene like this has, and what I see happening in Lowndes County right now is really typical of what’s wrong with Alabama government,” Jones said. “Everything done behind closed doors, no transparency. People come out and try to set up little booths and try to explain what’s going on to the best of their ability, but the fact of the matter is, nobody really knows what’s going on down here.”
Jones focused his remarks on the importance of communities being informed about data center projects coming to their areas and accountability if companies break their promises.
He said transparency means “disclosure from start to finish.” That includes details like environmental impact and size but also clarity on who is behind the massive facilities, he said.
“We’re also talking about transparency when it comes to accountability and who owns the projects, who is literally putting this up, who is going to make the money,” Jones said. “I think it’s unconscionable that you have non-disclosure agreements with public officials. …You should not have a whole bunch of shell corporations out there picking off land with option contracts.”
Though he is calling for a slowing of the development of the facilities, Jones reiterated that he’s not against data centers.
He said the centers can have serious economic benefits for communities, and that for some localities, those perks could be worth the potential trouble.
“Ultimately, any data center could have financial benefits for a community,” Jones said. “We have to acknowledge that, but those need to be negotiated on the front end, you need to fill out full disclosure, and a community has to make the decision. Is the cost worth the benefit? Is the benefit worth the cost?”
That kind of clear disclosure is not present in Lowndes County, Felicia Williams, the Jones campaign’s Lowndes County captain, told Alabama Daily News.
Williams is “greatly concerned” about how Project Red Clay would affect the surrounding area, especially with respect to health, the environment and home values. She has been working with other community members to demand answers, she said.
“Residents have gone to commissioners’ meetings looking for information on this project, and we’re really not given much,” Williams said. “It’s good to have someone like Senator Jones to come out and support us, and say let’s hold off on this until we get some real answers. That’s what we want, and I believe that’s what we deserve. This is our home.”
The discussion of data centers came as the Alabama Public Service Commission holds proceedings to gather feedback from the public about how it should evaluate Alabama Power’s large load data center contracts, including how the board should weigh whether the centers benefit the surrounding communities.
The public comment period ended last week, and Alabama Power now has the opportunity to respond to the feedback.
Asked about what factors he thinks the board should consider, Jones said that the board should not approve any new contracts until the new governor and other officeholders take over in January. He called on the PSC to instate their own moratorium on approving any data center contracts.
No matter what happens in November, the new year will mark serious turnover for the board tasked with regulating some of Alabama’s utilities.
Two members of the three-person board were defeated by primary opponents, and four more members were appointed by Gov. Kay Ivey as part of the PSC’s expansion. Alabama’s next governor will also be tasked with appointing an energy secretary – a new cabinet position created by the PSC overhaul legislation – to oversee the board.
State Rep. and Democratic lieutenant governor nominee Phillip Ensler, who has been running alongside Jones, also spoke about the Lowndes County project. He called community members’ continued engagement at county commission meetings “inspirational” and applauded audience members for showing up.
Both Jones and Ensler urged voters to make candidates’ positions on data centers decide who they support in November.
Jones’ opponent, U.S. Sen. and Republican gubernatorial nominee Tommy Tuberville, has been outspoken in his support for data centers. He recently claimed that anti-data center messaging is “propaganda” from China and the Democratic party at the Business Council of Alabama’s Governmental Affairs Conference.
Tuberville has also said he has been reading up on data centers for some time, but Jones implied he’s not looking at the full issue.
“He’s met with and he brags about the fact that he has studied (data centers) for two years, but he’s only met with the power company and he’s only met with the tech bros that are due to make billions off of these things,” Jones said.
Jones also claimed that Tuberville called Lowndes County residents’ concerns “bullcrap” and said that the only “bullcrap” present is data center information coming from Tuberville.
The Tuberville campaign did not respond to Jones’ statements.
The governor’s race between Jones and Tuberville is a rematch of the 2020 Senate contest that first sent Tuberville to Washington. The general election is Nov. 3.