Updated 1:45 p.m. Oct. 22
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which regulates the state's air quality, water quality and waste management, has shut down its electronic filing portal for certain environmental permit applications, an agency spokesperson confirmed Oct. 22. The shutdown comes after watchdog groups said the agency violated an order from Gov. Greg Abbott by processing nearly three dozen permit applications for data center projects.
What you need to know
Abbott directed the TCEQ to "halt all permits sought by data centers" on Sept. 21, citing ongoing audits of the industry by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas and the Texas Water Development Board. Nearly one month later, two groups—the oil and gas watchdog FracTracker and the progressive consumer rights group Public Citizen—identified 35 data center-related applications that had been approved, certified or otherwise moved forward by the agency since Sept. 21.
TCEQ officials and the governor's office emphasized that the processing of applications did not mean permits had been "issued." However, the agency disabled its automated electronic filing system and suspended initial stormwater and wastewater permits, known as "notices of intent," for 17 data center construction projects.
"TCEQ’s automated electronic filing application system has been shut down," TCEQ spokesperson Victoria Cann said in an Oct. 22 statement. "To ensure all applications are thoroughly reviewed by agency staff to determine if they are related to data centers, applications must be physically provided to TCEQ."
The 17 stormwater and wastewater permits were issued through an automated system, Cann said. The permits suspended as part of TCEQ's review include a permit for EdgeConneX’s second data center campus in Bastrop County and one for a Google data center facility in Tarrant County, both of which are in Community Impact's coverage areas.
The below list of newly suspended permits was provided by Public Citizen on Oct. 22 and verified by Community Impact. Information about permits and regulated entities is available through TCEQ's central registry.
The agency's online portal—State of Texas Environmental Electronic Reporting System, or STEERS—is used for a variety of electronic permits, registrations and reports related to companies' air emissions, water pollution, hazardous waste recycling and more. The portal's webpage states it was "temporarily shut down," and additional information about TCEQ's review of applications is available here.
"TCEQ retroactively suspending construction stormwater approvals in the wake of FracTracker and Public Citizen’s scrutiny means that any clearing, grading and excavation at these sites must stop immediately," FracTracker researcher Sam Law said in an Oct. 22 news release. "The confusion surrounding these approvals further proves the need for a moratorium: TCEQ is proving itself incapable of meeting complex regulatory challenges posed by data centers without further study."
Originally published 5:20 p.m. Oct. 20
Texas environmental regulators have continued processing certain data center permits in the month since Gov. Greg Abbott ordered a permitting pause, according to a new report from FracTracker, an oil and gas watchdog group.
The big picture
Amid public opposition to the state's booming data center industry, Abbott directed the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality last month to "halt all permits sought by data centers" while the Electric Reliability Council of Texas conducts an audit of proposed data center projects.
Yet as of Oct. 16, the TCEQ had moved at least 35 data center-related applications forward, FracTracker and the progressive consumer rights group Public Citizen found in an analysis of TCEQ records.
The agency has issued public notices for three data center projects since Abbott ordered the pause Sept. 21, per the Oct. 19 report. It also approved stormwater coverage, certified air emissions limits or assigned engineers to other projects.
"These actions do not signal an agency trying to pause," FracTracker said in the report.
In a statement, Abbott's office emphasized that new data center permits had not been "approved" since Sept. 21.
"No permits have been approved," Andrew Mahaleris, the governor's press secretary, said Oct. 20. "In line with the governor’s directive, TCEQ has not taken and will not take any proactive actions related to the approval of data center permits."
Zooming in
Since Abbott announced the permitting pause, TCEQ records show that the agency has:
Fast-tracked or assigned engineers to 14 project applications for power generation facilities that would serve data centers
Approved stormwater coverage, which may put projects on track for construction, for 11 applications
Issued certifications establishing air emissions limits for seven applications
Mailed public notices for three applications
According to FracTracker's report, TCEQ officials told the watchdog that "companies can submit applications, but their applications will not advance through the review process."
TCEQ spokesperson Victoria Cann told Community Impact that "the commission has not issued any permits related to data centers."
Construction projects impacting at least one acre of land—including data centers—generally require stormwater and air permits from the TCEQ, the agency's website shows. A message on TCEQ pages about stormwater permits states that due to the governor's directive, "applications for construction projects in association with a data center" are halted until further notice.
However, stormwater construction permits for the projects identified in the report, including one for EdgeConneX’s second data center campus in Bastrop County, were listed as "active" as of press time.
Following the Sept. 21 pause, data center developers filed plans in at least two of Community Impact's coverage areas, previous reporting shows:
Permit applications for those projects had not been approved or advanced as of Oct. 20.
More details
Abbott previously asked the TCEQ to share details on its implementation of the permitting pause by Oct. 19. In an Oct. 19 letter, interim executive director Steven Schar said the agency had "paused the issuance" of all permits for "infrastructure directly supporting data centers."
TCEQ staff are screening permit applications and pausing applications that are "subject to the directive," Schar wrote in the letter, which was provided to Community Impact by the agency and is shown below.
State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, an Austin Democrat running against Abbott in the Nov. 3 election, said data centers have been "circumventing [Abbott's] audits since day one."
"Greg Abbott’s tough talk on data centers is nothing more than an election year stunt," Hinojosa said in an Oct. 20 statement addressing FracTracker's report. "Abbott invited these data centers to Texas with the richest tax breaks in the country, and then pretended to pause approvals for political gain."
ERCOT is scheduled to wrap up its audit of proposed data centers in late November and release reports on its findings in early December, Community Impact reported. Abbott said Sept. 21 that the TCEQ should stop issuing data center-related permits "until ERCOT completes its review," indicating that the agency could resume permitting later this year.
