Local governments across Indiana are adopting restrictions on data center development, as communities weigh potential economic benefits against concerns about electricity, water and land use.
Indiana University's Environmental Resilience Institute is tracking how counties are responding to the growing industry.
As of August, ERI found 13 Indiana counties have adopted ordinances establishing planning, design or reporting requirements specifically for data centers. Another 24 have enacted temporary moratoria on construction, while three, including Monroe County, have banned data center construction.
Janet McCabe, a senior adviser with ERI, said these local actions reflect the level of public attention surrounding proposed projects.
"I think what this is showing is that there's a tremendous amount of public interest, and that the issues that people are concerned about are real and matter to them and to their elected officials," McCabe said.
Those concerns include water and electricity consumption, noise, air pollution and how large developments could change the character of surrounding communities.
The response comes as Indiana's data center industry is expanding rapidly.
ERI cites research estimating 38 Indiana operational data centers and another 37 planned or under construction at the beginning of 2026. The institute says Indiana's data center electricity consumption could grow from about one terawatt-hour in 2025 to more than 6.5 terawatt-hours by 2030, increasing from about one percent to more than six percent of statewide electricity demand.
How counties regulate the facilities varies significantly.
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McCabe pointed to Lake County as one of the more comprehensive examples. Its ordinance includes requirements addressing noise, setbacks, electricity availability, energy efficiency, water management and eventual decommissioning.
"They really range," McCabe said. "Maybe the most comprehensive one would be Lake County's, where they have a lot of expectations that they're putting on the developers to develop water-use plans and forward-looking plans of how these facilities will affect the local community."
Other communities have instead used temporary moratoria to pause development while officials decide on permanent regulations.
McCabe said openness from developers will be important as more communities consider proposals.
"I think one of the most important things is transparency," McCabe said, adding that communities want accurate information about a project's size, environmental effects and whether residents could ultimately be responsible for infrastructure or energy needs.
Data centers can require hundreds of acres of land and large amounts of electricity and water. ERI says a hyperscale campus can require more than 1,000 megawatts of power and could consume millions of gallons of water for cooling each day.
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Supporters of data center development point to construction jobs, tax revenue and the growing demand for computing infrastructure. ERI notes the facilities generally employ fewer people after construction relative to their size and investment.
McCabe said local governments are trying to determine what safeguards make sense while proposals continue moving forward.
"Let's build them in a way that minimizes their water use, that minimizes their impacts on air pollution," McCabe said.
ERI plans to continue updating its county tracker as local governments adopt ordinances, moratoriums or other restrictions.
McCabe said the institute hopes to provide response examples for communities considering their first data center proposal.
