Officials in Morgan County, Alabama, have approved a one-year moratorium on data center cryptomining projects, blocking a proposed Bitcoin mining facility near Somerville.The decision follows opposition from residents living close to the planned site.Put forward by VoltCore, the proposed development would have seen a Bitcoin mining data center developed on 15 acres of land near Union Road in southeast Morgan County, close to the intersection of State Roads 36 and 67.Commissioners voted on Tuesday, June 23, to approve the moratorium, which pauses the project while the county studies its potential impact. Local residents had raised concerns about noise, the environment, road damage, power infrastructure, and the wider effect of placing an industrial-scale computing facility in a rural residential area.More than 450 people signed petitions opposing the development in recent weeks. Morgan County Commission Chairman Ray Long said residents’ concerns played a major role in the decision, adding that the moratorium would give officials time to gather more information on how the proposed facility could affect the surrounding community.The project had already run into local resistance before the vote. Earlier this month, homeowners near the planned site rejected requests for easements needed to support new power infrastructure for the facility.VoltCore representatives had offered residents cash payments, a year of free Internet service, a natural gas line, and land restoration in exchange for cooperation, according to local reports. None of the homeowners had accepted the offers.Residents told local media they had moved to the area for peace and quiet, and argued the project would change the character of the community. Concerns included the effect of heavy construction traffic on Union Road, which residents said was narrow and not suited to industrial vehicles, as well as the impact of new high-voltage power lines.VoltCore representatives said the facility would not create noise pollution, increase local power bills, or draw on water resources. The company also said the project would create 20 to 30 jobs.VoltCore describes itself as an Alabama and Southeast US-focused engineering, procurement, and construction firm working across power generation, digital infrastructure, and industrial facilities.According to the company’s website, it has commissioned more than 400MW across 27 projects, with stated experience in substation design, transmission interconnects, switchgear, high-voltage systems, data centers, HPC campuses, and Bitcoin mining sites.