HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-09-02 Carolyn Atwood Support Testimony
From: Carolyn Newman
To: Planning WPC Testimony
Subject: Strengthen and pass Bill 170
Date: Wednesday, September 2, 2026 3:27:38 PM
My name is Carolyn Atwood and I live in Kalaoa in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii 96740. I am writing in strong support of Bill 170 and asking the Windward Planning Commission to
recommend one additional strengthening change before sending it back to the County Council. ...
The original Bill 170 language uses subjective phrases like "industrial-scale operation" and "beyond that typically accessory or incidental to office, commercial, or public institutional
uses" that a well-resourced developer's attorney can argue around. The definition below replaces that subjectivity with objective physical criteria and a clear 20 megawatt threshold
that cannot be disputed.
Cooling, power, and support infrastructure, including but not limited to servers, network equipment and appliances, telecommunications equipment, data storage systems, systems for
monitoring and managing infrastructure performance, environmental controls, fire protection systems, security systems, electrical substations, generators, and redundant power supplies;
and which requires or is designed to require 20 megawatts or more of electrical capacity at full build-out. This definition includes a single facility and any campus of multiple facilities on
contiguous or adjacent parcels under common ownership or control whose combined electrical demand meets or exceeds 20 megawatts. This term includes facilities commonly described as
large-scale, hyperscale, neocloud, and artificial intelligence data centers and colocation campuses. This term does not include telecommunications facilities regulated under Section
25-4-12, hospital or government data systems, university educational and research facilities, or business offices in which servers are incidental to the primary use."
As a long time Kona resident I am primarily concerned about the following negative aspects
that would be created if our Island becomes the target of one or more data centers.
While they bring in tax money, dropping a massive data center
into a local neighborhood can cause several serious strains on a
community:
Draining the Local Water Supply: In areas prone to
drought, a data center can compete directly with residents
for drinking water and agriculture, pumping millions of
gallons out of local rivers or underground aquifers.
Straining the Power Grid: Because they eat up so much
electricity, they can overload the local power grid. This can
drive up electricity prices for nearby residents or even lead to
rolling blackouts during hot summer months.
Noisy Cooling Fans: The massive industrial fans and
backup diesel generators required to run these facilities
create a constant, low-frequency humming noise. For
neighbors living nearby, this noise pollution can ruin peace
and quiet.
Massive Land Use but Very Few Jobs: These compounds
take up hundreds of acres of land that could otherwise be
used for parks, housing, or green spaces. Furthermore,
because the buildings are mostly filled with machines, they
require very few actual employees to run—meaning they
don't bring many permanent jobs to local residents.
Higher Carbon Emissions: If the local power grid relies on
fossil fuels (like coal or gas) to generate electricity, the
sudden surge in power demand from a new data center
drastically increases the community's overall pollution and
carbon footprint.
I respectfully and most emphatically ask the Windward Planning
Commission to strengthen the wording of Bill 170 and to pass it
on behalf of concerned citizens living on the island of Hawaii.
Carolyn Atwood
808-938-5533
73-1157 Ahikawa Street
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. 96740
Sent from my iPhone