Supreme Court ruling lets data centers bypass Clean Water Act permits, accelerating development
By
Miranda Willson
Summary
A 2023 Supreme Court ruling that narrowed the scope of the Clean Water Act has dramatically reduced the number of streams and wetlands requiring federal water pollution permits. This has allowed data center developers to bypass permitting processes that were once standard for construction projects, accelerating development while stripping communities of a key lever to challenge these sprawling, resource-intensive facilities. The article examines the environmental and community impacts of this regulatory shift.
Source
bskySupreme Court ruling lets data centers bypass Clean Water Act permits, accelerating developmentpolitico.comKey quotes
· 3 pulledOnce one of the most important permits that virtually all construction projects needed, now everything from subdivisions to oil pipelines to data centers can be built without federal water pollution permits if the streams and wetlands they are
As a tidal wave of sprawling energy- and water-guzzling data centers are proposed across the country, opponents are finding that one of their strongest levers for challenging projects has all but disappeared.
That's thanks to a 2023 ruling from the Supreme Court that dramatically shrank the number of streams and wetlands protected by the Clean Water Act.
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