"Lowell residents have filed a lawsuit against a data center and state environmental regulators, alleging the facility has harmed their neighborhood and that officials unlawfully sidestepped public oversight during its approval process. The complaint, filed April 27 in Middlesex County Superior Court, targets the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the data center's owner, Markley Group. The 10 plaintiffs - members of a grassroots group known as Honest Future for Lowell - say the facility's growth has disrupted life in the city's Sacred Heart and Back Central neighborhoods, both long designated as environmental justice communities."
"At the center of the lawsuit is a 352,000-square-foot data center that residents say looms over nearby homes, with cooling tower mist settling on properties and diesel generators contributing to noise and emissions. The filing alleges industrial generators sit behind a neighborhood little league field and that surveillance cameras monitor surrounding streets and backyards."
"The residents are represented by attorneys from Yale Law School's Environmental Justice Law and Advocacy Clinic and the Conservation Law Foundation. Their legal challenge focuses on the DEP's approval of a July 2025 air quality permit for the site and what plaintiffs describe as an "unlawful" administrative agreement that allowed construction during an ongoing appeal."
"Attorneys for the plaintiffs say the lawsuit is the first against a data center in Massachusetts, potentially setting a precedent as similar facilities rapidly expand nationwide alongside growing artificial intelligence infrastructure."
Lowell residents filed a lawsuit in Middlesex County Superior Court against the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the Markley Group, alleging a data center harmed their neighborhood and that officials bypassed public oversight during approval. The complaint, filed April 27, names 10 plaintiffs from Honest Future for Lowell. The suit targets a 352,000-square-foot facility affecting the Sacred Heart and Back Central neighborhoods, both designated environmental justice communities. Residents allege the data center’s cooling tower mist settles on nearby properties and diesel generators create noise and emissions. The filing also alleges generators are located behind a little league field and surveillance cameras monitor nearby streets and backyards. The legal challenge focuses on DEP’s July 2025 air quality permit and an administrative agreement that allowed construction during an ongoing appeal.
Read at Boston.com
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