Poconos Data Center FAQ

Yes. Protect Our Poconos currently tracks several documented data-center proposals in Monroe County, including Smithfield Gateway, Pennsylvania Glacial Till, and Pocono Manor, along with related transmission projects and other properties on our watchlist.

A documented proposal does not mean a project has received final approval or will necessarily be built. We distinguish confirmed proposals from infrastructure projects, watchlist properties, and community rumors.

No formal data-center proposal near Bushkill Falls has been identified in the public records reviewed by Protect Our Poconos.

However, Lehman Township has adopted regulations governing future data centers (Ordinance 155, adopted November 2025), major transmission infrastructure is being developed through the Bushkill area, and confirmed proposals are advancing elsewhere in the Poconos. Together those developments have contributed to local concern about where future projects could be proposed.

We have not identified a formal public data-center application in Pike County comparable to the confirmed proposals currently being reviewed in Monroe County.

There has been community speculation involving properties in Lehman and Dingman townships, including the former Eagle Village/Tamiment area and land near Route 739. but those claims should not be confused with confirmed development applications.

Current documented proposals include the Smithfield Gateway Data Center in Smithfield Township, the Pennsylvania Glacial Till proposal in Tobyhanna Township, and proposed data-center development around Pocono Manor.

The projects differ significantly in size, zoning status, and stage of review, so they should not be treated as one regional project.

There is currently no confirmed public data-center application or official announcement for Eagle Village or the nearby former Tamiment property that Protect Our Poconos has identified.

The idea has circulated as a community rumor. Because the surrounding former resort area includes large properties that could attract future redevelopment interest, we continue to monitor public records. but we label the claim unconfirmed unless documentary evidence emerges.

Smithfield Gateway is a proposed large-scale data center in Smithfield Township, Monroe County.

The applicant's revised plans include a two-story building totaling approximately 500,000 square feet, with a ground footprint of approximately 250,000 square feet. The proposal is undergoing the township's conditional-use process. Smithfield Township maintains the official application documents and hearing materials online.

Not for construction. The current proceeding concerns conditional-use approval, which determines whether the proposed use satisfies the township's applicable zoning requirements. Smithfield Township explicitly states that the application is for conditional use rather than land-development approval. Additional approvals and permits would still be required before construction could proceed.

Because the proceeding is active, check the project tracker for the latest status.

Demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence has increased the need for large computing facilities and the electricity infrastructure that supports them. Developers typically look for combinations of available land, electrical capacity, fiber connectivity, cooling options, and access to major markets.

Pennsylvania has attracted significant interest. State officials reported in August 2026 that more than 100 potential projects had appeared in publicly sourced databases, although only a much smaller number had reached actual permitting stages. Statewide interest does not mean every discussed project will ultimately be built.

There is no single number. Electricity demand varies enormously depending on the size and type of facility. Large AI and cloud data centers can require hundreds of megawatts of capacity. For local context, the proposed Smithfield Gateway project has been described as a 250 MW facility.

Nationally, data centers consumed about 4.4% of U.S. electricity in 2023, and federal estimates project their share could grow substantially as AI and cloud computing expand.

Not necessarily, but the concern is legitimate. Rapidly adding very large electrical loads can require new generation, transmission, and grid upgrades. If supply and infrastructure fail to keep pace, those pressures can affect regional electricity costs.

Pennsylvania's current GRID Requirements are intended to prevent developers from shifting those costs onto ordinary customers. covered developers must pay for incremental generation and infrastructure associated with their electricity demand. Whether a particular project affects household bills depends on the project, utility arrangements, and the broader regional market.

A data center does not automatically cause blackouts simply because it uses a large amount of electricity. The concern is whether new demand is added faster than generation, transmission, and distribution capacity can support it. Utilities and grid operators study large new loads and may require infrastructure upgrades before connecting them.

The broader increase in electricity demand from data centers is one reason federal and regional planners are studying additional generation and transmission capacity.

We have found no public evidence that the Shawnee–Walker project was originally created specifically for data centers. FirstEnergy says the approximately 30-mile, 69-kV project is intended to increase capacity, accommodate existing and future load growth, and improve reliability in parts of Monroe and Pike counties.

More importantly, PJM planning documents show the Shawnee-to-Walker solution was already being evaluated in 2018 and 2019. years before the current Pocono data-center proposals. citing reliability problems and limited restoration options as project drivers. Additional transmission capacity could make future large electrical loads easier to serve, but that is different from saying the line was secretly designed for data centers.

Some do. Others use relatively little. Water consumption depends heavily on the cooling system, climate, facility design, and whether water is reused. The Susquehanna River Basin Commission says data-center cooling demand can range from very low to millions of gallons per day depending on the technology used.

That is why statements such as "every data center uses millions of gallons per day" are misleading.

Potentially, but the answer is site-specific. A facility that requires substantial groundwater withdrawals could affect nearby groundwater levels depending on geology, withdrawal volume, and location. A facility using little or no groundwater may present a very different situation.

Because many Pocono residents rely on private wells, groundwater studies and disclosure of the proposed cooling system and water source are important parts of evaluating individual projects.

Data centers contain cooling equipment, fans, pumps, transformers, and other mechanical systems that can operate continuously. Backup generators also create noise during testing or emergency operation.

How noticeable that sound is at nearby homes depends on equipment selection, setbacks, sound barriers, terrain, and other site-specific factors. Noise should be evaluated using actual acoustical modeling and enforceable limits rather than assuming that every data center will either be silent or unbearably loud.

Computing equipment itself is not a major source of combustion emissions, but many large data centers use diesel emergency generators.

Diesel exhaust contains pollutants including particulate matter and nitrogen oxides, and EPA recognizes health risks from sufficient exposure to diesel emissions. Modern emissions controls can substantially reduce those pollutants, and backup generators generally operate much less frequently than a conventional power plant. The relevant questions for a project include the number and type of generators, emissions controls, testing schedule, and distance from nearby homes.

There is not evidence that living near computing equipment itself creates some unique health hazard. Potential health-related concerns involve more familiar environmental exposures such as noise, diesel exhaust, construction activity, and site-specific air or water impacts. Whether nearby residents experience meaningful exposure depends on the design and location of the facility.

Long-term research on communities surrounding today's rapidly expanding hyperscale facilities remains an area worth monitoring, but uncertainty should not be presented as proof of harm.

It varies from a single large building to a multi-building campus spanning hundreds of acres. The building is only part of the site. Large facilities may also require cooling and electrical equipment, substations, backup generators, internal roads, stormwater infrastructure, security areas, and buffers.

For a local example, the proposed Smithfield Gateway building alone would have an approximately 250,000-square-foot ground footprint and about 500,000 square feet of total floor area.

Yes, but construction employment and permanent employment are very different. Building a large data center can create substantial temporary work for electricians, construction trades, engineers, and contractors. Once operating, modern facilities generally require a much smaller permanent workforce.

Recent Brookings research found measurable employment gains in counties receiving large data centers, but estimated the typical effect at roughly 100 to 200 additional jobs over a decade, depending on the type of facility. For Smithfield Gateway, the applicant has estimated approximately 60 permanent full-time on-site jobs.

They can. Large facilities may create significant taxable property and economic activity, but the actual fiscal benefit depends on local tax rules, incentives, exemptions, infrastructure costs, and agreements between developers and governments.

That means neither "data centers provide no economic benefit" nor "a data center will automatically lower everyone's taxes" should be treated as fact without analyzing the specific project.

Local governments have significant authority over where and under what conditions development can occur, but that authority is not unlimited. Pennsylvania municipalities can regulate uses through zoning districts, conditional-use standards, setbacks, buffers, noise limits, and other land-use requirements. Whether an outright prohibition would be legally defensible is a more complicated zoning-law question.

Pennsylvania's current state framework also places substantial importance on local approval. Under the August 2026 GRID requirements, local approvals play a key role before state environmental permitting can move forward.

A conditional use is a land use that a zoning ordinance permits only when specified requirements are satisfied. During a conditional-use proceeding, the applicant presents evidence showing that its proposal meets those standards. Interested parties may have opportunities to present evidence or participate according to local procedures.

Conditional-use approval is not necessarily the same thing as final land-development or construction approval.

Pennsylvania's 2026 Governor's Responsible Infrastructure Development (GRID) Requirements address electricity costs, environmental protection, community engagement, transparency, and workforce development.

Following an August 2026 executive order, new data-center proposals seeking Pennsylvania permits face additional requirements, including legally binding commitments to GRID standards and local approval requirements. Local zoning requirements still matter because land-use approval generally begins with the municipality where a project would be located.

The right action depends on the decision being considered. Residents can:

• follow township agendas and project filings;
• attend planning commission and supervisor meetings;
• participate in public hearings;
• submit comments during formal comment periods;
• contact appropriate local or state officials;
• review permit applications and supporting studies.

For formal land-use proceedings, participation rules may differ from ordinary public comment. Always check the official notice for the specific project.

Protect Our Poconos maintains a Local Projects tracker that separates documented proposals from related infrastructure, watchlist properties, and community rumors.

We link back to township records, utility materials, permit documents, and other primary sources whenever possible.