I urge DEQ to reject the proposal allowing data centers to operate diesel generators during planned outages. This rule would essentially let large private companies offload pollution onto the communities surrounding them - communities that often have no say, and receive no benefit from the facilities causing the impact.

Planned outages are not emergencies. Companies have the time and resources to prepare cleaner options, whether mobile Tier IV generators or pollution-control retrofits. Choosing diesel is simply choosing the cheapest option while nearby residents absorb the environmental and health costs.

DEQ should not approve a policy that makes it easier for wealthy corporations to pollute the neighborhoods where they don’t live. Protecting air quality must remain the priority.