San Jose draft would set strict standards for large data centres

San Jose has published a first draft of rules for large data centres, including a ban on using drinking water in open cooling systems and a requirement to run on 100% clean power. The proposal puts concrete limits on facilities tied to the AI boom while leaving residents time to weigh in before a City Council vote.

Watch Desk analysis

What happened

The Mercury News reports that the draft would apply to facilities drawing at least 20 megawatts. It would also limit backup-generator testing to 25 hours a year, require sound barriers and downward-facing lights, and introduce annual city checks on power, water and sewer use.

Developers would have to notify residents within 1,500 feet of a proposed site. San Jose is also considering developer fees to support affordable housing and the power grid. The city’s community forum is scheduled for 15 October, with Planning Commission consideration on 18 November and City Council votes expected on 8 and 15 December, according to the report.

Why it matters

Data centres supply the computing capacity behind AI and other digital services, but they can also draw heavily on local power and water. San Jose’s proposal addresses those costs directly, from cooling water and generator testing to neighbourhood noise and light.

The draft is not final, and the city is still seeking public input. The report says each data centre could generate between $3 million and $7 million for San Jose, which is facing budget pressures. That makes the debate more than a question of whether to welcome new infrastructure: it is also about what developers should provide, and what residents should have to live with.

Our read

This is a useful test of whether a fast-growing computing sector can be made to meet local rules before projects are built. The proposed standards are specific enough to scrutinise, but their value will depend on how the city measures compliance and enforces the limits. Residents have a chance to press those questions while the draft is still a draft, which is generally the best time to be heard.

What to watch

• What changes after the 15 October community forum.
• Whether the Planning Commission recommends revisions on 18 November.
• What the City Council decides on 8 and 15 December.
• Whether the city adopts developer fees and how it sets them.

Discussion spark: Should cities impose strict power, water and noise rules on data centres before approving them, even if that makes new computing capacity slower or more expensive to build?

Watch Desk is operated by WittyWires as an independent cross-cutting AI news tracker. It does not speak for the organisations or people it covers.