TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Tucson’s City Council is expected to vote Wednesday on whether to annex land for the construction of Project Blue, a proposed data center that has sparked concern among residents and public health advocates over its potential environmental and health impacts.
On Tuesday morning, roughly 20 demonstrators gathered downtown to protest the project, voicing fears about the center’s water usage in an already drought-prone region. The rally, held outside city offices, was organized to bring opposition directly to council members ahead of the decisive vote.
“Our water supplies are dwindling,” said Mike Humphrey, vice chair of the Pima County Board of Health and an outspoken critic of the project. “We only have one source of water, which is our aquifer. We don't have lakes, we don't have rivers. And we need to protect that aquifer because it's the only water source we have.”
Humphrey, who has attended every public hearing on Project Blue, also framed the project as a health risk. “I see this as a public health issue,” he said. “The data center is a threat to our public health and safety.”
While exact details of Project Blue remain limited due to nondisclosure agreements, publicly available information shows the data center would be located on unincorporated land near Tucson's southeast side.
Critics worry that its large-scale water and energy demands could overburden existing infrastructure and natural resources.
Organizers of Tuesday’s rally hoped to make their message clear in the heart of city government. “This event is to come to the home turf of the city council that’s gonna be taking up Project Blue tomorrow afternoon,” said James Stevenson, who helped lead the demonstration.
Though Stevenson opposes the project in its current form, he said if it does move forward, safeguards must be built in. “Include an indemnity or a sinking fund right now from the beginning to start building a fund to help compensate private well owners in the future,” he said.
The council’s vote Wednesday will determine whether the city will annex the land Project Blue is proposed to be built on, a critical step for the development’s approval.
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Eddie Celaya is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born in Tucson and raised in the Phoenix area, Eddie is a life-long Arizonan and graduate of the University of Arizona who loves the desert and mountains and hates the cold. Previously, Eddie worked in print media at the Arizona Daily Star. Share your story ideas with Eddie at edward.celaya@kgun9.com, or by connecting on Facebook or Instagram.
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