Alabama Town Powerless Against Bitcoin Mining Data Center
A massive Bitcoin mining data center is being built in Somerville, Alabama, despite local opposition and moratoriums at both county and town levels.
The facility, proposed by VoltCore, will have a capacity of 50 MW and is currently under construction. The issue lies in the state's zoning laws, or lack thereof: Morgan County, where Somerville is located, has not established any zoning regulations, as it does not meet the threshold of at least 600,000 residents required by Dillon's Rule.
Municipalities and towns do have some authority over zoning, but the town of Somerville had not exercised this power until now. County Commission Chairman Ray Long stated that 'We can’t keep them from doing anything right now because there's no laws at all in Morgan County in rural areas [...] There’s no zoning, there’s none of that, so we really don't have anything to stand on other than what we can say is, 'We really wish you wouldn’t do it.'
The construction is expected to continue despite local opposition, and several petitions are circulating, with one having over 2,000 signatories. A GoFundMe campaign has also been set up to raise funds for a lawyer to help address the issue.