Hut 8 says its proposed Beacon Point campus will minimize noise. A researcher says residents should still understand potential impacts of noise pollution. <\/p>\n
ROBSTOWN, Texas \u2014 Questions remain about water use, power demand and economic impacts as Florida-based contractor Hut 8 moves forward with its proposed Beacon Point data center campus in Nueces County.<\/p>\n
Now, a researcher who studied communities living near large concentrations of data centers says another issue should be part of the conversation: noise.<\/p>\n
Beacon Point is a planned 525-acre artificial intelligence data center campus near Robstown. Earlier this year, Hut 8 announced a 15-year lease agreement valued at $9.8 billion for the project’s first phase, making it one of the largest developments proposed for the Coastal Bend.<\/p>\n
RELATED: Hut 8 says AI data center near Robstown won’t use local water, but key questions remain<\/a><\/p>\n Hut 8 maintains that noise from the facility should not be a significant issue for nearby residents.<\/p>\n “We take any kind of concerns or issues regarding sound very seriously, and we’re ensuring that any building that we are doing is going to be up to all applicable standards and regulations, so that there’s minimal noise disruption for residents nearby,” Hailey Miller, Hut 8’s senior director of regulatory and government affairs, told 3NEWS in a June 3 interview.<\/p>\n Still, Neha Gour, a Ph.D. candidate at George Mason University and lead author of a recent peer-reviewed study examining the impacts of data center development in Virginia, said communities should understand the potential effects of facilities that operate around the clock.<\/p>\n “Residents living near some of these facilities have reported concerns about persistent low-frequency humming sound, which is generated by cooling and mechanical systems because these facilities are currently operating 24\/7,” Gour told 3NEWS. “Even moderate noise levels can become a concern for nearby communities over time.”<\/p>\n According to Gour, that constant operation is unlikely to change anytime soon.<\/p>\n “Every time we send an email, the email goes to a data center somewhere in the world and actually goes back to the person who the email was supposed to be sent,” she said. “Because of the urgency of our reliance on the internet today, we can’t afford to not have data centers operate 24\/7.”<\/p>\n