‘These data centers, they’re coming’: Wayne County moves to tighten rules ahead of tech expansion

JESUP, Ga. (WTOC) -Wayne County leaders are taking aggressive steps to make sure local land is protected before industrial tech giants break ground.

During a Monday morning work session, the Wayne County Board of Commissioners met to discuss expanding their existing data center regulations with nine new proposed amendments.

Wayne County already has some of the strictest data center rules in the state, including a massive 1,500-foot buffer between facilities and residential property lines. While no facilities have been approved in the unincorporated county yet, a recent announcement near Jesup City limits have officials moving quickly to close any remaining regulatory loopholes.

“These data centers, they’re coming,” Wayne County Commission Chairman Kevin McCrary said. “Times are changing. The things that we have in our lives and that we want require change. And what we look at as commissioners is the risk versus the rewards on the things that we do.”

Wayne County Commissioner Tim Hopkins agreed, emphasizing the need to safeguard unincorporated areas of the county before companies make a formal push to build.

“So what this board is doing is getting ahead of the ball,” Hopkins said. “We said, what do we got to do to protect Wayne County? So we got to working on this ordinance.”

The Nine Proposed Amendments

The commission is considering the following nine additions to strengthen their existing January ordinance:

1. Retention Pond Liners and Subgrade Testing: Requiring heavy-duty, 60-millimeter geomembrane liners (three times the thickness of an average pool liner) and rigorous soil testing for any holding pond receiving cooling chiller water to prevent groundwater contamination.
2. Decommissioning and Financial Responsibility: Requiring site stabilization plans and an escrow system to guarantee that private companies—not local taxpayers—pay for the cleanup and removal of equipment if a facility goes out of business.
3. Annual Compliance Reports: Creating a yearly checklist to ensure that operating conditions, such as water usage metrics, do not fall out of compliance after initial county approval.
4. Emergency Generator Testing Limits: Restricting routine backup diesel generator testing to normal daytime hours to prevent late-night noise pollution, while preserving emergency reliability.
5. Construction Management Plans: Requiring developers to present detailed staging plans for the construction years, including traffic routes, dust mitigation, staging roads, and temporary lighting.
6. Hazardous Materials and Spill Responses: Mandating strict disclosures and containment plans for cooling fluids, wastewater, PFAS, and chemical releases.
7. Dark Sky Lighting and Substation Screening: Implementing screening around bright utility substations and “dark sky” compliant exterior lighting to protect the county’s rural night skies.
8. Drought and Emergency Water Management: Forcing data centers to detail how they will reduce their massive cooling water demands during a regional drought or utility disruption.
9. Transmission Infrastructure Coordination: Requiring early coordination on off-site power transmission line impacts without overstepping the county’s legal routing authority.

The amendments would also enforce strict limits on water usage effectiveness, capped at 1.8 liters per kilowatt hour, and tightly monitor decibel noise levels.

“We don’t want contractors or companies coming in here being able to do what they want... and they’re gone and then the people of Wayne County will have to suffer for it,” McCrary said. “’Cause I’ve done my homework to find out what I need to do to keep this county safe.”

There were no public comments during Monday’s work session, but the county plans to host a public comment session next month before bringing the amendments to an official vote at their September meeting.

To watch the full meeting, click here.

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