Landowners sue Colleton County over data center ordinance

Lawsuit says zoning ordinance violates law and threatens the treasured ACE Basin

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Today, on behalf of Colleton County residents Miles Crosby and Jennifer Singleton, the Southern Environmental Law Center filed a complaint in state court in Colleton County to challenge the recently passed zoning ordinance that allows data centers to be built in rural areas of the county with a “special exception.” The lawsuit argues that the new ordinance violates state law, the county’s comprehensive plan, and the county’s zoning code.

Shortly after Colleton County passed this special exception ordinance, Eagle Rock Partners filed an application under the new ordinance to construct an 859-acre, 1,000-megawatt data center complex in a rural part of Colleton County. This would be one of the largest data center complexes in the country. Data centers not only use large quantities of energy, but they can also adversely impact water quality, contribute to air, noise, and light pollution, and degrade the character of rural communities. 

The proposed data center complex would be located in the rural ACE Basin, a 1.7-million-acre, largely undeveloped watershed positioned around the Ashepoo, Combahee, and Edisto rivers. In December, hundreds of residents attended a public meeting to raise concerns and oppose the proposal. 

“As a lifelong Colleton County resident, I’m seriously concerned about the harm the data center construction would have on our rural community, local wildlife, and the environment. We cannot allow this ordinance to threaten our star-filled night skies, natural quiet, and enjoyment of landscapes with light, water, and noise pollution.” – Miles Crosby, Colleton County resident 

“I chose my homestead here in Colleton County because of the property’s natural beauty and the landscape surrounding it. It’s rural living at its finest steps from the ACE Basin. I did my due diligence and specifically chose to move to an area that was zoned for rural agricultural use. Now with Colleton County passing this ordinance, opening the door for this 9-building data center campus, this entire pristine and vulnerable area is under attack undermining decades of conservation. Once constructed, there is no going back. It will change the landscape forever. There is no universe where this should be allowed anywhere near the ACE Basin.” – Jennifer Singleton, Colleton County resident

“This zoning ordinance opens up a treasured and rural part of our state to industrial development and all the pollution and degradation that comes with it. Data centers don’t belong in the rural ACE Basin. Colleton County should be continuing the legacy of conservation in this area, not selling it to the highest bidder.” – Emily Wyche, SELC Senior Attorney