By: Cate Eberly

Ohio is quickly becoming a prospective data center hub with new technology companies investing billions to make new facilitates across the state. 

According to Ohio Consumer’s Counsel, 200 centers have been built in Ohio within the last ten years, most in the Columbus area. These data centers store and process large amounts of information primarily for social media or AI. 

Supporters of these data centers believe they bring new economic opportunities to communities around the state. Large construction forces are needed to support new mass data centers, creating long term roles.

Philip Derrow of The Columbus Dispatch remarked the potential economic impact if a mass data center was to be placed in southeast Ohio. The area lost numerous job opportunities due to the decreased work in the coal industry. “Most of those jobs were never replaced,” Derrow said.

“Unemployment in southeast Ohio, including Pike County, is 50% higher than the state and national averages,” Derrow said. “Good-paying, long-term jobs are almost priceless to those without them.”

However, not everyone supports AI centers entering their communities. Data centers require mass amounts of water to function, another reason companies have been drawn to Ohio: water accessibility. The implementation of these data centers has the potential to drain local water supplies. 

According to the office of the Ohio Consumer’s Counsel, “Large, AI-focused ‘hyperscale’ data centers can consume as much energy as small cities.”

Action has been taken to protect citizens. The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) approved AEP Ohio’s Data Center Tariff which requires new, large data centers to pay for at least 85% of their contracted electricity capacity for up to 12 years, even if they use less.

In a Dayton Daily News article, Rob Scott, an attorney and small business owner, describes the impact he sees data centers to potentially have on the community. “Data centers operate around the clock,” Scott said. “They don’t shut down at night. They don’t scale back on weekends. Artificial intelligence computing, cloud storage and streaming services all require constant power. This requires utilities to build enough capacity to meet peak usage at all times.”

Ohio Democratic representative Greg Landsman has additionally introduced legislation to ensure data centers pay for their environmental impact. The “No Harm Data Center Act” requires data center operators cover the cost of new energy infrastructure, prohibit elected officials from signing nondisclosure agreements and require a study of the facilities’ environmental impacts.