While many in Memphis have been vocal in their concerns regarding xAI’s environmental impact, the Greater Memphis Chamber said Tuesday that the project will change the trajectory for how data centers operate.
“I would love for anybody to compare what this company is doing as a data center versus what other companies have done as data centers when it comes to the steps that have been taken to be sensitive to the environment and resources,” Bobby White, chief government affairs officer of the Greater Memphis Chamber, said.
The comments were made during a webinar dedicated to explaining why the Shelby County Health Department granted the data center its air permits last week.
Shannon Lynn, a principal consultant for Trinity Consultants, located in Little Rock, Arkansas, said the turbines that received a permit will operate at one of the lowest achievable emissions rates. “These turbines will set a precedent,” Lynn said.
White said the webinar session was also an opportunity to provide context for which the project was considered upon.
The Greater Memphis Chamber expects the city to see the benefits of the xAI data center as time progresses.
“We don’t defend people; we defend projects that we’ve worked really hard on,” White said. He added that economic development in the city has been difficult, especially seen against the context of violent deaths in Memphis such as rapper Young Dolph, Eliza Fletcher, and Tyre Nichols.
“It’s been difficult for us here in Memphis,” White said. “When we hear people being very cavalier about ‘just a billion-dollar project can go on somewhere else’ — especially when it comes from elected officials — it’s very concerning to hear that.” White was alluding to concerns from officials and concerned citizens regarding the data center and its impact on the environment.
xAI’s seeming lack of transparency regarding its gas turbines has been condemned, but White said the company was not required to disclose any information, since they didn’t request any “public, taxpayer-funded incentives or zoning changes.”
The Chamber also shared that a number of agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Tennessee Valley Authority(TVA), and Memphis Light, Gas, and Water (MLGW) have been monitoring and delivering input on the project.
Officials said such monitoriing also lends to the project’s compliance with federal and state regulations regarding the environment. White emphasized that xAI is investing $80 million in Memphis’ first wastewater recycling facility, which would preserve 4.75 billions gallons of water per year. White added that xAI’s water bill is projected to be about $700 a month.
He applauded the company for its environmental precautions, calling it a “paradigm shift,” as the data center opted to not use “good drinking water” to cool the facility.
Officials referred to the project as “historic” for not only the city, but the state, and a development based in innovation.
