Grant McClure of Coastal Conservation League warns data centers could strain power, water and wetlands

Grant McClure, South Coast office director with the Coastal Conservation League, told attendees that modern hyperscale data centers can create outsized demands on local utilities and natural resources and urged local governments to plan accordingly. "One gigawatt...is enough to power 1,000,000 houses," McClure said, using unit-scale comparisons to frame how large proposed facilities compare with typical local demand.

McClure cited recent local proposals and said the growing trend is driven by AI and cloud services. He pointed to a proposed 1‑gigawatt project by Eagle Rock Partners and a separate 3‑gigawatt proposal in Effingham County, and said a federal proposal at the Savannah River Site would pair 1 gigawatt of load with 2 gigawatts of on‑site power generation. He also attributed an estimate to Santee Cooper's president that "70% of projected load growth is...from data center demand in our state." McClure said the size and speed of these proposals mean counties should consider stopgap measures — including moratoria — to buy time for ordinance writing and public review.

McClure also raised environmental concerns tied to siting and operations: reliance on gas-fired on‑site generation, particulate and greenhouse‑gas emissions from backup and generator use during storms, large land clearing that can fill wetlands, and very large water withdrawals for cooling. "This facility in 2024 used, 853,800,000 gallons of drinking water," he said, and noted a recent state budget proviso that would temporarily require reporting of water use for facilities of about 200 megawatts and larger.

The presenter offered four local policy options — adopt a moratorium, write strict siting ordinances, disallow data centers in sensitive areas, or maintain the status quo and await state action — and recommended moratoria as a useful stopgap while communities update codes and comprehensive plans. The Net Resource Committee was flagged as the likely body to take up the issue next.

What happens next: local planning bodies, including the Net Resource Committee, are expected to discuss moratoria and ordinance options; Colleton County had a second reading and public hearing scheduled for Sept. 14 on a digital infrastructure overlay McClure highlighted.