A Microsoft-backed AI data center in Vineland, New Jersey, has become the target of mounting community complaints since construction began in 2025. The DataOne facility, tied to a EUR 17 billion agreement, faces allegations that range from unpermitted gas turbines to illegal construction and excessive nighttime noise.
According to the advocacy group Stand.earth, the project has been operating several unpermitted gas turbines on site, releasing air pollution in an area near two local schools. The site has also drawn allegations that it built an unpermitted 1.5-million-gallon liquefied natural gas storage tank and that noise levels at night are affecting residents within a half-mile radius.
How the Project Came to Light
Matt Williams, chairperson of the Sustain South Jersey group, said construction had already started before Nebius signed a multi-year deal in October 2025 to deliver dedicated capacity to Microsoft from the new Vineland facility. Local residents only learned the project was a data center after the EUR 17 billion agreement, which secures roughly 100,000 Nvidia GB300 GPUs for the tech giant, became public.
References to the data center began surfacing in government documents, prompting residents to press city officials for answers. The city held a town hall meeting in January 2026, several months after construction had begun. DataOne CEO Charles-Antoine Beyney acknowledged the meeting should have been organized months earlier.
Turbines, Noise, and Water Concerns
Weeks before the town hall, residents within a half-mile of the site began reporting a low hum often compared to the sound of a generator. A later investigation found 62 gas turbines deployed at the site, with at least 45 running at any given time. The situation echoes a project in Memphis, Tennessee, where 69 unpermitted natural gas turbines were installed to power data centers. In that case, the operator promised to remove the generators over the course of a year as they are gradually replaced by a 1.2-GW on-site power plant.
Concerns have also emerged over the site’s stormwater management system, which reportedly does not comply with state regulations. A third-party engineering review warned that unresolved issues could cause on-site and off-site flooding, a risk heightened by the facility’s 55-acre footprint. The review also found that the data center underestimated annual groundwater recharge by at least 20 million gallons per year, a shortfall that could lower aquifer levels and reduce the quantity or quality of water available to nearby residents.
The DataOne facility spans 55 acres in Vineland, New Jersey, and the disputed LNG storage tank is designed to hold 1.5 million gallons.
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Image: tomshardware.com
