BOISE, Idaho — The Boise City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve a six-month moratorium on mega data centers within city limits, following a proposal from Mayor Lauren McLean.
WATCH: Boise approves 6-month pause on large data centers
The moratorium temporarily stops new large data centers over 100,000 square feet or that require more than 200 megawatts of power. City staff said the 100,000-square-foot threshold comes from the scale it evaluated as having the potential for detrimental impacts on neighbors and the surrounding environment.
Sydney Hair fought back tears at the podium Tuesday night, telling Boise City Council members she's worried about what the growth of artificial intelligence and the data centers that support it could mean for her future.
"AI has been pretty devastating for my generation because it's been almost impossible to find a job," she said.
READ MORE | Why now? Boise mayor explains push to pause mega data centers before any are proposed
Hair graduated with a creative writing degree in 2022. She said she's struggled to find work in her field and has instead found jobs centered around training AI.
"I don't like the future that we are headed towards with what AI currently is right now and what data centers currently are right now," Hair said.
Hair was far from the only person asking the city to slow down. Every person who testified Tuesday spoke in favor of the moratorium, raising concerns about water, power, land and the environment.
"Who cares what profit could be gained if it devastates water and power resources we need to survive? We cannot eat or drink data," Alyssa Banner said.
Some residents wanted the city to go further, calling for an outright ban. But city staff member Hannah Brass Greer said the six-month pause will give the city time to figure out what it can legally regulate.
"Is it a land use that we can outright ban? I don't think we can do that right now, so the moratorium gives us the time to look into that," Brass Greer said.
Council member Jimmy Hallyburton said Idaho's private property rights can make some restrictions difficult, and he doesn't expect data centers to disappear completely.
"We're adding to the use of those data centers every single day. You use them when you're using your phone, you're using them when you're posting social media," Hallyburton said. "There is a need for data centers and there will continue to be a need, and that's why it's so important that we have to figure out a way to do them right."
The moratorium will go into effect immediately.
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