“Data centers create massive environmental impacts: increased water consumption, noise pollution, land use disruption, and air pollution, among others,” the letter from the lawmakers stated, adding that the increase in energy output for these centers would put a “strain on the electrical grid and [drive] up energy prices for the American people.”

The secretive nature of these plans was particularly alarming, the lawmakers said. “Our public lands must not be managed by secret deals and industry-led schemes,” they wrote, adding:

Federal public lands belong to all Americans, and all Americans deserve to have a say in development that would affect our lands, waters, and access to public resources. While an administration spokesperson has pledged that each data center proposal will be evaluated…this administration has rewritten the rules to limit transparency and public input while claiming to comply with the law.