"New Power Plants for Data Centers Would Significantly Increase Pennsylvania’s Climate Pollution", 02 July 2026

...Data center developers in Pennsylvania plan to rely on at least seven new natural gas-fired power plants that would emit climate-warming gases equal to adding 14 million cars on the road every year, according to a new report.

The report from the Environmental Integrity Project, an advocacy group, said the plants would together emit some 68 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent annually, part of a national trend that would result in a huge rise in greenhouse gas emissions amid global efforts to slow climate change. That bump would mean a 24 percent increase in Pennsylvania’s emissions as of 2022...

As plans for data centers proliferate across the United States, and affected communities claim the rush toward development will damage the environment and public health, the report is the latest to warn of a national surge in greenhouse gas emissions in response to huge new demand for electricity from the industry. Natural gas-rich Pennsylvania has attracted significant interest from tech companies hoping to build near an abundant fuel supply, even as the state’s legacy of fossil fuel extraction means that some residents are more skeptical of those plans...

Pennsylvania has 66 data center projects that are proposed, approved, under construction or in some form of preliminary activity, according to Data Center Proposal Tracker...

The report also found that data centers and their dedicated power plants were often proposed in low-income communities where public health and environmental quality is already compromised...