Protesters gathered outside the county building in Las Cruces after the Sept. 19 Doña Ana County Commission meeting on Project Jupiter. (Photo by Kent Paterson)
Plans for a US$165 billion data center are stirring controversy in the Paso del Norte border area of southern New Mexico, El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. Known as Project Jupiter, the 1,400-acre complex forms part of the Stargate Project, a $500 billion U.S. public-private partnership aimed at achieving global artificial intelligence (AI) dominance. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) appears to be fully aboard the initiative, launched in January by U.S. President Donald Trump and industry giants Oracle, OpenAI and Softbank. The EPA said in September that it will fast-track the review of new chemicals intended for data centers and related manufacturing. Sited on desert land just outside the U.S.-Mexico port of entry of Santa Teresa, New Mexico, opponents contend the development will jeopardize water supplies, increase air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, boost traffic congestion, and drive up demand—and prices—for... [Log in to read more]
