Listen: The RGV Business Journal breaks down the push against data centers in South Texas

The Journal’s Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza — who covers energy, infrastructure, and large-scale industrial development across the Rio Grande Valley — breaks down the growing pushback against data centers in South Texas.

She sat down with Spencer Cihak of KEDT to walk through Harlingen’s proposed moratorium and what’s driving it — from water use and flood risk to power demand and local control.

Listen to the conversation — and understand why one of the Valley’s biggest proposed projects is already facing resistance.

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The following is a rough, AI-generated transcript of the Journal’s Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza’s interview with Spencer Cihak of KEDT. Minor errors and misspellings may appear. For the full conversation, listen to the episode above.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: Earlier this week, the city of Harlingen became the first community in the Rio Grande Valley to begin the process of placing a temporary pause on data center construction.

KEDT’s Spencer Cihak and Rio Grande Valley Business Journal reporter Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza discussed the proposed moratorium and what’s driving it.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: A couple of months ago, we discovered that a company,  Eneus Energy out of Scotland, had essentially secured a contract on about 1,800 acres outside of Valley International Airport.

That site is just outside Harlingen city limits. So technically it’s in Cameron County, but it falls within Harlingen’s extra-territorial jurisdiction, or ETJ.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza:In theory, the city could potentially annex that land, though it would require voluntary annexation.

There have been significant restrictions at the state level on cities’ ability to annex, but the bottom line is that a relatively large data center is being proposed right next to the Harlingen community.

Since then, there has been growing community concern.

People are increasingly showing up to city commission meetings. I was at a meeting last night, and about a dozen people spoke during public comment — specifically against the data center.

The concerns range widely.

Residents are pointing out that farmers and ranchers don’t have enough water, and that some land is already lying fallow.

They’re asking: how can we support something that requires an industrial-scale amount of water?

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: At the same time, there are concerns about flooding.

Harlingen has experienced significant flooding issues in recent years — some pretty devastating events.

People are asking, “What is 1,800 acres worth of concrete going to do to our existing floodplain?”

Are we planning for runoff? Are we prepared for the impact?

Then there’s power.

Residents are questioning whether there is enough electricity generation in the Valley to support a project like this — and what it could mean for their electric bills.

At the same time, people are weighing the pros and cons.

The project is being pitched as a multibillion-dollar investment.

The company has said it could generate around $13 billion in economic impact, support hundreds of construction jobs, and create roughly 100 permanent positions.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: But based on what we’re hearing, it seems like both community members and local leadership are questioning whether that tradeoff is worth it.

There’s a sense that many residents are simply not interested in the project as it stands.

Last night, the Harlingen City Commission voted to begin the process for a moratorium on data centers.

One of the biggest challenges here is that, in a state like Texas, cities have relatively limited power.

They primarily have zoning authority and some regulatory tools.

But legally, if a business is allowed under zoning — or located in an area where zoning doesn’t apply, like the county — it can move forward.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: In this case, the project is in the county, where there is no zoning.

So, in practical terms, you can’t simply stop a business from coming.

That means even this moratorium is temporary — 120 days.

It’s not a permanent ban, but it is the first move of its kind in the Rio Grande Valley.

Other cities are already adapting.

McAllen, for example, recently updated its zoning code to include data centers as a specific land use.

That reflects the reality that data centers are a relatively new type of development for the region, and cities are still figuring out how to regulate them.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: In Harlingen, water is one of the biggest issues.

The city has Harlingen Water Works, which operates with some independence, but there is still some level of city influence.

At the meeting, officials initially tried to pass an ordinance that would give the city commission more oversight over water agreements.

Specifically, if the water authority were to commit long-term, industrial-scale water use to a company, the city wanted the ability to weigh in.

The idea was simple: the city wants oversight.

They want to be able to say yes or no to large-scale commitments.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: That proposal was ultimately tabled.

Officials are now considering whether they can negotiate with the Harlingen Water Works Board, which has its own governance structure.

Part of the concern is that the water authority already signed an agreement with the data center company back in September.

That agreement involves using effluent water — treated wastewater that would otherwise be discharged into the Rio Colorado and eventually flow into the Gulf.

The plan would divert about 4.5 million gallons per day of that water to the data center.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: Even though it’s not drinking water, that decision raised concerns.

Many residents were surprised that the agreement had been made, and some questioned whether the city commission had been fully involved.

At this point, it’s unclear whether that agreement can be reversed.

It appears to already be signed.

More broadly, it doesn’t appear that the city can legally stop the project outright.

What officials are trying to do now is slow things down — essentially hit the pause button.

There are still areas where the city has influence, including permitting and coordination with utilities.

There are also state-level permits the company will need.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: The project is still in the planning and development phase, but it has already stirred significant public reaction.

We’re also starting to see this issue spread across the Valley.

People are showing up to city meetings in other communities and asking:

“Are you working on data centers? Is this something we should expect here?”

The concerns come back to the same two issues: water and power.

On the power side, the numbers are striking.

Harlingen has about 30,000 homes.

Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza: The proposed data center could require up to two gigawatts of electricity.

That’s enough to power more than 200,000 homes.

That scale difference is what’s raising concern.

It’s the idea that a single project could require far more power than the entire surrounding community.

And that’s really what this debate comes down to — whether the region can support something of that scale.