(The Guardian) Sheldon Whitehouse, a democrat senator from Rhode Island, launched an investigation into Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI on Wednesday. The senator sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency head Lee Zeldin requesting that the agency look into the billionaire’s continued use of unpermitted methane gas turbines at his xAI data center in Southaven, Mississippi.
“Given the scale of emissions, the repeated use of unpermitted turbines, and the disproportionate effects on surrounding communities, EPA’s lack of enforcement is alarming,” wrote Whitehouse, who’s the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Musk has two massive data centers in the Memphis metropolitan area, one in the city’s industrial zone and the other just over the Tennessee border in Southaven. Both facilities have used unpermitted portable gas-burning generators, known to emit toxic pollutants including nitrogen oxides and formaldehyde. The Memphis data center ultimately got a permit for 15 turbines.
Whitehouse’s investigation comes one day after the NAACP sued xAI over allegations of violating the Clean Air Act in Southaven. The civil rights group says xAI has been polluting areas with homes, schools and churches, including in historically Black communities, by operating more than two dozen methane gas generators without permits.
Whitehouse called xAI’s turbine array in Southaven a “de facto power plant” and said the EPA has the legal responsibility to carry out its enforcement obligations.
“Given the scale of emissions, the repeated use of unpermitted turbines, and the disproportionate effects on surrounding communities, EPA’s lack of enforcement is alarming,” wrote Whitehouse, who’s the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Musk has two massive data centers in the Memphis metropolitan area, one in the city’s industrial zone and the other just over the Tennessee border in Southaven. Both facilities have used unpermitted portable gas-burning generators, known to emit toxic pollutants including nitrogen oxides and formaldehyde. The Memphis data center ultimately got a permit for 15 turbines.
Whitehouse’s investigation comes one day after the NAACP sued xAI over allegations of violating the Clean Air Act in Southaven. The civil rights group says xAI has been polluting areas with homes, schools and churches, including in historically Black communities, by operating more than two dozen methane gas generators without permits.
Whitehouse called xAI’s turbine array in Southaven a “de facto power plant” and said the EPA has the legal responsibility to carry out its enforcement obligations.
