Green Technology GlobalEvery new data center in the United States should be a good citizen, a good neighbor and a steward of the environment. In practice, that means five things: pay its own way, make its own power, make its own water, stay quiet, and open its books to the community that hosts it.
That is Green Technology Global's position. It is also, largely, what Illinois lawmakers have been trying to write into law.
What the Illinois POWER Act would do
The POWER Act (SB4016/HB5513) is proposed legislation to put guardrails on hyperscale data centers. Its goals are to protect the power grid, safeguard water supplies, and keep everyday consumers from paying for data center utility infrastructure.
The bill stalled in the spring 2026 session; its last action was a May 22, 2026 re-referral in the Senate. The Governor has since paused new data center tax incentives and asked lawmakers to take the issue up again in the fall veto session. The main provisions:
- Energy cost protection — data centers pay for their own grid build-out; capacity and transmission costs cannot be shifted to ratepayers.
- Clean energy — data centers are powered by new clean and renewable generation they bring to the grid.
- Water safeguards — water impact permits, quarterly water-use reporting and limits on aquifer depletion.
- Community accountability — cumulative environmental impact assessments, public transparency and enforceable community benefits agreements.
GTG supports those goals. Our contribution is a practical way to meet them: an operator-owned micro-grid powered by PTE turbofans, and on-site water from GTG atmospheric water generators. Projects built this way meet the Act's intent from day one, whether or not it becomes law.
GTG's response, provision by provision
Energy cost: the operator pays, the community doesn't
Primary power for a data center should come from a micro-grid the operator owns and runs, not from the public utility. That takes the build-out burden off utilities, ratepayers and government.
A typical data center needs about 20 MW. Fuel can be green hydrogen or ammonia delivered to the site, or natural gas with hydrogen separated on-site. Every cost of that fuel and equipment is paid by the operator, at no expense to utilities, ratepayers, nearby residents or businesses.
Clean power: a path to zero emissions
PTE turbofans produce about 20 MW from two 20-foot containers on roughly 1,000 square feet. They use heat and emissions recovery technology to capture energy and pollutants that conventional generators release.
We want to be precise here. On natural gas, emissions are low but not zero, and GTG will publish third-party test results that quantify them. Moving the fuel supply to green hydrogen or ammonia is the path to zero. Where an interconnection agreement allows, surplus power can be sold back to the grid, with the operator paying all interconnection and export costs.
Noise: no audible impact on neighbors
Noise isn't addressed in the POWER Act as introduced, but it is often the first complaint neighbors raise. GTG holds that a data center should cause no noise impact on the surrounding area, with equipment baffled, buffered and set back as needed.
PTE turbofans can be installed in underground vaults to mitigate noise. We recommend a noise study for every site and a published limit, in decibels, measured at the property line.
Water: make it on-site, leave the aquifer alone
A data center should produce its own water at the point of use so it places no demand on existing water resources. GTG atmospheric water generators draw water from the air, independent of groundwater and municipal supply.
GTG's proprietary Water Vapor Recovery System recaptures water lost to evaporation from HVAC and cooling systems, reducing how much new water is needed. Because AWG output varies with humidity and season, each site's water plan includes month-by-month modeling and storage for dry winter periods.
Accountability: open books and a binding agreement
A self-supplied data center should welcome oversight, not avoid it. GTG recommends that operators:
- Complete a cumulative environmental impact assessment before construction.
- Publish grid draw, emissions and water production on a public dashboard.
- Sign an enforceable community benefits agreement, with no nondisclosure agreements with local officials.
A practical middle path
Communities want lower bills, protected water and quiet neighborhoods. Developers want power on schedule and a clear path through approval. A data center that makes its own power and water, pays its own way and reports openly can deliver both.
GTG invites developers, operators, legislators and community groups to review this approach. To turn these commitments into a public promise, see the Good Citizenship Pledge. To assess a specific site, use our project assessment.
Sources
- Illinois Environmental Council — Data Centers in Illinois / POWER Act
- Illinois General Assembly — Bill Status of SB4016
- Daily Yonder — Illinois "not quite ready" to pass data center rules (Jun 10, 2026)
- GTG — Data Center Power & Water Infrastructure