US Energy Secretary Chris Wright is urging supporters of data centers to push back against critics, saying concerns about the facilities are overblown. Wright, a former CEO of oilfield service company Liberty Energy, made the comments at an Amazon Web Services conference.

Data Center Concerns

Wright listed concerns that opponents have raised about the boom in data centers, including water and power use, and the potential for artificial intelligence to take away jobs and harm communities. He likened the issue to opposition he faced over the drilling technique for oil and gas known as fracking.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll this month showed that only one in three Americans approve of the fast pace of data center construction. Data center opponents are raising real issues, Wright said, but they are overblown. He urged supporters to speak with skeptical neighbors and share facts about the benefits of data centers.

Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.