Can America Win the AI Race Without Running Dry? Non-Profit Demands Data Center Moratorium, EPA Says US C

In the first half of 2026, U.S. tech companies committed more than $850 billion to data center leases.

In parallel, a battle is emerging over whether the rapid expansion of data centers is outpacing environmental safeguards.

Environmental Groups Push For a Pause on Data Center Growth Jim Walsh, policy director at Food & Water Watch, a non-profit organization, told Benzinga in an emailed statement that some of the country's biggest concentrations of new data centers are emerging in Virginia, Georgia, Texas, Arizona and Oregon, where communities are increasingly grappling with the industry's environmental footprint.

Walsh pointed to research from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and analysis by the U.S.

Energy Information Administration that examine the growing energy demands associated with data centers and AI infrastructure.