Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has ordered a halt to all environmental permits tied to data center construction, deepening a pause on the AI industry that has sought to grow throughout the state.
\n\nCNBC reports that the directive, issued Monday, tells the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to stop processing data center permits until the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) finishes auditing the backlog of data centers waiting for grid connections. TCEQ has to report back to the governor’s office on its compliance by Oct. 19.
\n\nIt builds on an earlier order. In August, Abbott’s office had already directed the audits and put a moratorium on new data center grid approvals. Monday’s order extends that freeze to environmental permits, too, closing off another route developers had been using to keep projects moving.
\n\nBreitbart News reported earlier in September that Abbott is targeting data centers that have refused to report their water usage via mandatory surveys:
\n\nThe directive follows a rough stretch of compliance numbers: less than 30 percent of data centers responded to the state’s water usage survey last year, and response rates dipped as low as 28 percent over the past three years. Abbott wants an update…
Original source: https://www.breitbart.com/economy/
