Seeking clarity, Clean Energy Columbus conducted a town hall Monday night at the Columbus Public Library, where representatives from Environment Georgia and Chattahoochee Riverkeeper shared facts about data centers’ energy and water use throughout Georgia to better inform residents who have a litany of questions about Project Ruby, the proposed hyperscale data center being planned for the Upatoi/Midland area of northeast Muscogee County.
Residents leaned in during a slide show, yearning for answers about data centers, taking pictures of statistics with their phones. One slide created by panelist Janette Gayer, director of Environment Georgia, all the data centers in the Peach State add up to 85 million square feet.
Chris Manganiello, the water policy director for the Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, listed a finding that 71,000 gallons per day of water are used, on average, to irrigate 70 acres of agricultural land in Georgia. Project Ruby is reported to need 330,000 gallons of water per day…