Data Center Zone Faces Referendum Challenge

A significant local movement is underway in Frederick County, Maryland, to challenge a recently enacted 2,615-acre data center zone through a ballot referendum. Organizers from the Frederick County Data Center Referendum Committee aim to gather approximately 15,000 signatures from registered voters by mid-March to force a public vote on the zone established in January. As of mid-February 2026, the committee has garnered support from 13 nonprofit organizations, with additional groups considering an endorsement.

Environmental advocacy groups, including the Climate Communications Coalition and Clean Water Action, have lent their support. Their primary concerns center on potential increases in air and water pollution, the impact of backup diesel generators, and the conversion of farmland into impervious surfaces. The Frederick County Farm Bureau also opposes the rezoning, highlighting the loss of prime agricultural land within the new zone. Local organizations like Mobilize Frederick are assisting in publicizing the petition drive, emphasizing the unknown impacts of data center expansion on water and energy resources.

Further supporting the referendum are organizations such as Nature Forward and the Chesapeake Climate Action Network Action Fund, which view unchecked data center expansion as a threat to regional resources and climate goals. The Fellowship of Scientists and Engineers and the Sugarloaf Alliance have also formally backed the movement. The referendum presents Frederick County voters with a decision on the future balance between agricultural heritage and the growth of high-tech industrial development.