HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-09-21 Donna G Testimony
From: Donna Grabow
To: Planning WPC Testimony; Planning LPC Testimony; sharkgss
Subject: Re: Support Bill 170 Regarding Data Centers
Date: Monday, September 21, 2026 3:31:21 PM
Wow Donna, this email to County Council is over and above!
Excellent research on important details needed to be inserted into Bill 170. I hope
the council uses the suggestions.
I remember when you first shared your testimony about Bill 170 to our group in June.
You even had the chance to speak to Kimball about your testimony, and she
acknowledged it.
-Donna G
On Monday, September 21, 2026, 01:46:54 PM HST, sharkgss <sharkgss@protonmail.com> wrote:
Aloha Planning Commission,
I am in support of bill 170 regarding data center restriction in Hawaii County, although additional
language should be implemented to avoid loop holes.
Attached is a proposal I sent to county council last June regarding data center regulation
including Infrastructure Limits, Capacity Caps, Eminent Domain, Transparency, and Review
Process to protect the County’s limited water and energy resources, preserve private property
rights, ensure public transparency, and align with the "One Water" and net-zero carbon goals.
Section 1 establishes a hard limit of 5 Mega Watt (MW) limit allows no exceptions. Any project
proposing 5.1 MW or higher is automatically prohibited. This prevents "Hyperscale" Development:
A 5 MW data center is typically classified as a small facility, spanning 5,000 to 20,000 square feet
and housing approximately 500 to 2,000 servers.
Aggregation Clause: Section 1(C) prevents developers from bypassing the cap by building
multiple 4 MW facilities side-by-side on contiguous land. If the total load exceeds 5 MW, the
project is rejected.
Grid Protection: Given that the entire Hawaii Island grid peaks at roughly 200–250 MW, a 5 MW
cap ensures no single private entity can consume more than 2–2.5% of the island's total peak
capacity, protecting residential reliability and government operations.
Alignment with State Trends: This proposal mirrors 2026 legislative trends in several states
where moratoriums and caps are being used to pause large-scale construction until infrastructure
impacts are fully understood.
Thank you for your attention on this important issue.
Donna Thompson
Kamuela, HI
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