BENTON TWP. — Supervisors say an ordinance regulating data center development will protect residents, but residents say it doesn’t go far enough to ensure their safety against potential development.
Officials unanimously approved the environmentally conscious ordinance at a special meeting Tuesday night. It classifies data centers, their accessory uses and power substations as conditional uses, meaning they have to meet certain conditions and receive township approval, in the township’s industrial zone — a mile-long section between the Interstate 81 exits for Routes 107 and 438 in the southeast portion of the township.
People fill the Benton Twp. Community Center for a hearing on a township ordinance regulating data center development Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo)
Notably, it requires developers to use closed-loop cooling and submit studies showing the environmental impact of the data center. The township has not received any applications for one, Chairwoman Bonnie Rosiak said at the meeting.
More than 40 people filled the township community center for a public hearing on the ordinance prior to the vote. Those who spoke praised the supervisors for their work on the ordinance, but worried that provisions or portions of the ordinance that aren’t clearly defined will put the township at a disadvantage if a developer comes along. Some questioned how it will protect wildlife in the area around the industrial zone, setbacks and definitions. Many of those who spoke wondered about whether wells within several miles of a proposed data center should be tested.
Benton Twp. does not have public water, according to officials, with properties using wells for their water source.
The ordinance states that data center developers cannot use water from private wells or other water sources like streams as their primary water source, and must provide a water feasibility study if a proposed data center uses nonpublic water.
No data center will be approved unless the study demonstrates that the anticipated water supply yield is adequate for the project, and any proposed water withdrawals and discharges will not endanger or adversely affect the quantity or quality of groundwater supplies or surface waters within 2 miles of the project.
Courtney Prokopchuk, vice chair of the Benton Twp. Planning Commission, speaks during a public hearing on a township ordinance regulating data center development Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo)
In addition, all wells that are within 2,000 feet of the property line shall be tested for flow, volume, chemicals and sediment prior to construction, during the building permit approval process, six months after a certificate of occupancy is issued, every six months for the following two years and annually thereafter.
Residents who spoke felt the testing should apply to wells beyond 2,000 feet from the property and asked for it to be changed.
Resident Kim Dominick also wondered if the ordinance addresses lighting, noting the Keystone Observatory in the township.
“You guys are doing a great job,” she told the supervisors. “I appreciate what you’re doing. I’m not trying to needle anybody or anything like that. It’s just a concern of citizens.”
North Abington Twp. resident Renee Czubowicz, who owns property in Benton Twp., wondered if the ordinance covers warehouses that are converted to data centers. Rosiak said it does.
Sharon Soltis Sparano of La Plume Twp. said the ordinance doesn’t take the public input into consideration and questioned the legality of how the hearing was conducted, particularly being put under oath. She also wondered about well water and wildlife being affected. Sparano is the Republican challenging Democratic state Sen. Marty Flynn for the 22nd Senate District in the November election.
Rosiak said it includes protections for wildlife and wetlands, and Solicitor Danielle Mulcahey said the applicant would have to provide studies that show the project wouldn’t negatively affect wildlife. There are also requirements for lighting.
Resident Susanne Green wondered why the setbacks were changed and asked the supervisors to consider graduated setbacks from residential properties, and about fines. Her comments were greeted with applause. Green said later in the meeting that even if there are amendments, the ordinance has defects that would allow data center developers to come in, adding the law doesn’t comply with Gov. Josh Shapiro’s executive order regulating data center development.
She said after the meeting the required setback in the ordinance — 500 feet from any dwelling — isn’t far enough.
“That strikes me as not being protective of our citizens,” Green said.
People sign in prior to the public hearing on Benton Twp.’s ordinance regulating data centers Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026.
(Christine Lee/Staff Photo)
Sharon Soltis Sparano of La Plume Twp., the Republican candidate for the 22nd state senate district, speaks during a public hearing on Benton Twp.’s ordinance regulating data center development Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo)
Benton Twp. resident Susanne Green speaks during a public hearing on a township ordinance regulating data center development Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo)
Show Caption
1 of 3
People sign in prior to the public hearing on Benton Twp.’s ordinance regulating data centers Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026.
(Christine Lee/Staff Photo)
Supervisors said before voting they felt the ordinance is a good start to address data centers but acknowledged it can be amended.
Mulcahey said the ordinance was prepared with input from many sources, including the public, and includes numerous regulations.
However, with advances in technology, Mulcahey said the ordinance would likely need to be amended, pointing out advances with closed-loop systems. Courtney Prokopchuk, vice chair of the township’s planning commission, said they will stay on top to ensure it is the best ordinance.
Under the ordinance:
• Buildings are required to be no higher than 35 feet — one of the shortest height restrictions outlined in a data center ordinance enacted by any Lackawanna County municipality — with the lot a minimum of 25 acres, with data centers limited to the confines of the industrial zone.
• Developers are required to provide a Data Center Acoustic and Ecological Impact Report, which must include measurements of existing environmental conditions for 14 days and capture data during the avian spring migration window from April 1 to June 1 and during the dawn chorus, which occurs daily from one hour before sunrise to two hours after sunrise; and measurement locations must include points along the perimeter of all critical habitats, wetlands and Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory sites within a 2-mile radius of the property boundary.
• A closed-loop cooling system that cycles water without evaporating it off is required for server racks and IT equipment. Use of open, evaporative cooling towers is prohibited unless the developer demonstrates by “clear and convincing evidence” that closed-loop technology is not feasible for the specific project, and gets a conditional exemption and all applicable state permits. Antifreeze or heat transfer fluids used in closed loops must be nonhazardous.
• A balloon test must be conducted, in which tethered balloons are spaced to represent the outer corners and highest peaks of the proposed structure, for two days; the plans must be adjusted if the test finds any portion of the building or infrastructure visible from an area at high risk of environmental harm.
Lackawanna County has emerged as a hotbed for data center proposals in the past year, with most concentrated in the Midvalley and North Pocono regions. While there have been no data centers proposed in Benton Twp., there have been in the other Abingtons townships of Newton and Ransom.
Municipalities in Pennsylvania are required to allow for every type of lawful land use within their borders, or else they face legal challenges over exclusionary zoning.