Welcome to the latest edition of Power Play! Senior writer Molly Taft shares insights on the political season’s hottest issue: data centers. At a Climate Week panel, protesters with Extinction Rebellion NYC interrupted discussions, highlighting the contentious relationship between data centers and the climate.

The interruptions were a microcosm of the broader debate, with public opinion at rock-bottom levels for data centers and moratoriums appearing in both red and blue states. Defenders of data centers, like Cully Cavness and Varun Sivaram, argue that data centers can be beneficial to local communities, but some voters focus more on local concerns like water and energy bills.

Michigan’s climate activist William Lawrence, who recently won a tough Democratic primary, has made data center opposition a cornerstone of his campaign. However, climate change is not the primary concern for many voters, with energy use and local air and noise pollution taking precedence. Despite the potential for data centers to help transform the energy sector, the reality is a massive fossil fuel buildout, with data centers likely comprising more than 5% of global electricity demand by 2035.

This situation raises questions about the true impact of data centers on the climate and whether the focus should shift to ensuring that the energy used is clean and sustainable. The debate is complex, with both benefits and drawbacks, and the future of data centers in a green world remains uncertain.