Some 16 US states have proposed laws to ban or temporarily block new facilities, and the issue could play a key role in November's midterm elections.
Data centres are the lifeblood of the digital world, but their rapid expansion and enormous electricity consumption are fuelling a public backlash around the world.
Data centres have typically been located near cities to maintain easy access to high-voltage power lines and water resources required for cooling.
Facilities vary wildly in size, ranging from operations that fit inside a garden shed to installations covering vast expanses of land.
As opposition gathers steam, one proposed alternative involves placing data centres in space, externally, or on the Moon to harness abundant solar energy.
Global data centre electricity consumption is currently thought to surpass the total energy use of the whole of France.
This growing resistance highlights mounting concerns over the environmental impact, noise levels, and physical footprint of these facilities.
This year, the tech industry is expected to spend a combined $765bn, external ($544bn) on AI infrastructure in 2026, with this topping $1tn next year.
There are about 12,250 data centres around the world, according to Data Center Map, external, a company that tracks both operational and pre-operational sites.
Data centres are the lifeblood of our digital world, but there are growing concerns about their environmental impact.