Cooling Conflict: Embedding Mediation Protocols in Data Center Land Sale Contracts

Authors

• Allison Elias

Abstract

Imagine a two-thousand-acre plot of land in rural Louisiana being leveled to accommodate a 10 billion dollar data center. With the construction of this data center comes the destruction of a region inhabited by rich plant and animal life as well as 80,000 residents, a quarter of whom live below the poverty line. Alternatively, think of a $750 million data center being built next door to your home, causing sediment build-up in your water supply, water scarcity, light pollution, and destruction of neighboring forests. Unfortunately, one does not have to imagine these scenarios. Both stories come directly from recent news articles that expound on the growing concerns surrounding data center development.

Recommended Citation

Allison Elias, Cooling Conflict: Embedding Mediation Protocols in Data Center Land Sale Contracts, 2026 J. Disp. Resol. ()
Available at: https://scholarship.law.missouri.edu/jdr/vol2026/iss2/14