Hood County moves ahead with data center construction despite resident concerns

Hood County residents express concern over data center construction

Hood County did not approve a moratorium to pause construction on a data center despite residential concerns over water, energy and more. FOX 4's Vania Castillo has more.

HOOD COUNTY, Texas - Hood County did not approve a moratorium on construction of a data center despite residential concerns over the area's capability to host the structure.

What we know:

Hood County residents were hoping to slow down the construction of the data center, allowing for more time to gather information to understand the impact of building the center.

There are multiple proposed data centers, including the Comanche Circle Project, which Hood County commissioners gave conditional approval for last month.

Before the vote on a moratorium, county attorney Matt Mills told commissioners state law does not allow counties to pause development, and that trying to do so could expose the county to lawsuits.

The commissioners ultimately heeded the warning, paving the way for the data center to be built.

What they're saying:

The organization Public Citizen released a statement condemning the decision to move forward with construction.

"Without this pause, Hood County and its residents remain vulnerable to unregulated growth in unincorporated areas, potentially leaving the Paluxy Valley watershed and local groundwater resources at significant risk," the statement read. 

"Hood County is facing the potential buildout of four data centers," said Rita Beving of Public Citizen. "Failing to pass a moratorium will trigger the construction of several natural gas plants alongside these projects. The Hood County region may not have the water required to support these developments, and the county commissioners are putting vital resources at risk."

Diana Wright petitioned for the moratorium and was disappointed with the outcome. She expressed concerns about a lack of water in the area for the project.

"We don't have the money that the big companies do. Frankly, I don't want the big money," she told FOX 4's Vania Castillo. "I just want to live peacefully with a quality life where my children and my grandchildren can continue to live and enjoy the freedoms that we have living out in the rural areas."

"I just don't understand how the rights of someone who lives out of state and will continue to live out of state, how those rights can supersede our rights, because we live here, and there are more of us," Wright continued.