Memphis Mayor Paul Young issued an executive order on Friday establishing a 90-day study period to develop recommendations on how the city should regulate large data centers.
The study aims to create policy guardrails and recommended safeguards for the city’s communities, infrastructure, natural resources, and utility customers.
The executive order said Young will appoint subject-matter experts to a group to help develop policy recommendations. The group will focus on six areas: land use and neighborhood protections, infrastructure, air quality, water and aquifer protection, energy and utilities costs, and noise.
“My responsibility is to protect Memphians and make sure our city benefits from the investments coming here. From day one, we’ve worked to address the impact of data centers on our energy, water, and infrastructure,” Young said.
“Our residents deserve answers and strong protections. This executive order brings the right experts and agencies together to establish clear guardrails and make sure growth works for Memphis,” he added.
The group will also include community input, requiring at least three community education sessions, a written public comment period, and a presentation about its findings and recommendations.
The executive order will not impede the Memphis City Council’s work in regulating data centers. The city council is considering several data center ordinances, including a 12-month temporary moratorium and zoning regulations.
The city council passed two data-center-related zoning regulations on Thursday after a protest during Tuesday’s meeting forced it to postpone part of the meeting and finish it on Thursday.
The city council will consider the temporary moratorium at its next meeting on Tuesday, October 20th.
“We cannot address every concern through City government alone,” Young said. “Air quality, water, energy, and land use involve different agencies with different responsibilities. We need everyone exercising their authority and working toward the same goal: strong protections for the people of Memphis.”
“This work is about taking deliberate action,” Young added. “We are listening to our residents, bringing the right people to the table, and moving with urgency to put strong, enforceable guardrails in place.”
As a city, Memphis serves 16 data centers.
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at [email protected].
Photo “Paul Young” by Paul Young.
