Several environmental groups and organizers are urging the Mississippi Department of Environment Quality (MDEQ) to deny xAI’s air permit in Southaven ahead of a public hearing Tuesday night.
The comments come hours before the department is set to conduct a public hearing regarding the construction of 41 natural gas-fired combustion turbines at the power plant located at 2875 Stanton Road. The hearing will be held at the M.R. Davis Public Library located at 8554 Northwest Drive.
“MDEQ and our public officials need to put our communities before big-tech expansion,” Shannon Samsa, a representative from the Safe and Sound Coalition, said during a press conference on Tuesday. “The MDEQ permit board has the authority to deny this permit, and they must deny this permit.”
Samsa along with Rep. Justin J. Pearson, members of Memphis Community Against Pollution (MCAP), The Memphis Branch of the National Association for The Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and Young, Gifted, and Green held a press conference at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Southaven.
Leaders not only asked MDEQ to deny xAI’s permit, but stressed the shared impact of xAI’s expansion. Many DeSoto county residents have been vocal about their opposition to xAI, and have also made noise-pollution complaints about the turbines.
Samsa said the noise has worsened since August and has caused sleep disruptions among nearby residents, adding that many have experienced migraines and other health issues as a result of the noise.
The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) recently released a study showing that the proposed methane gas turbines could “worsen regional air pollution and cause tens of millions of dollars in annual health damages.”
Samsa said the health assessment should have been commissioned prior to the building of the power plant, rather than putting the burden on the community
“Our analysis shows that operating 41 gas turbines in Southaven would worsen fine-particle pollution in vulnerable communities that are already near or above federal air quality standards and could result in $30-$44 million in annual health damages,” Michael Cork, a scientist cited in the study, said.
The law center said Whitehaven, Horn Lake, Westwood, and Southaven communities would be impacted the most by the pollution.
Proponents of the tech expansions tout their proposed economic impact. A January 7th release from Southaven officials called xAI’s plans to operate a third data center a “multi-billion-dollar” and “coveted” development.
“This development will provide unprecedented financial benefits to Southaven and our community and could potentially become the largest economic investment in the history of Mississippi,” the release said. “In 2028, Southaven will see an estimated revenue increase north of $20 million, an increase of 24.27 percent.”
The release also said the idea that officials have not been transparent is “completely not true” and that their announcements were made out of respect of the “competitive position of private companies” and to not miss “economic opportunities.”
Opponents of the expansion have criticized the decision, saying it prioritizes financial benefits over residents’ health.
“People are likely to die because of this pollution, and we still have people saying tax money is somehow equivalent to people’s lives,” Pearson said. “We can’t keep saying the economic benefits of tax money is worth the lives of people in our community.” Pearson added that he and his colleagues are strong believers in “people power” and encouraged elected officials to do right by their constituents.