Snohomish County to hold hearing on data center development moratorium

The Snohomish County Council has scheduled a public hearing for August 19 regarding an emergency moratorium on new data center development. The moratorium, which was unanimously adopted on June 24, places a six-month hold on the filing, processing, and approval of applications to establish, expand, or change the use of properties to data centers in all zones of unincorporated Snohomish County.

The ordinance applies to facilities with a total planned electrical load of 2 megawatts or greater. Councilman Nate Nehring, the ordinance sponsor, stated the pause is intended to allow the county to carefully deliberate on long-term data center policies concerning land use, infrastructure, energy, and water demand without the pressure of new facilities being sited before regulations are established.