Local pushback in Wisconsin is zeroing in on AI data center power and water use, with a petition over 1,200 signatures and coordinated protests targeting mega‑campuses like Microsoft’s $7.3 billion Mount Pleasant build and the $15 billion Port Washington site serving OpenAI and Oracle.
Lawmakers are responding with a transparency bill on electricity and water consumption, while utility We Energies proposes $5.5 billion in new generation (solar plus two gas plants) largely funded by data center customers, including a special rate class.
For AI infra planners, the signal is clear: permitting risk, utility negotiations, and community opposition are now first-class constraints in Midwestern GPU siting, and this piece is worth a close read for how those dynamics are unfolding on the ground.
Source: Petition to pause Wis. data centers tops1,000 names, protests planned
