Dear editor:

As most residents are aware, Park County is updating our County Land Use Plan, with redrawn zoning maps, and new regulations and allowed uses. I discovered while poring over the draft DSR (Development Standards and Regulations) that there is a new category of land use called “Heavy Load Electric User." In plain English this means data centers and crypto-mining. According to proposed regulations, this use could be permitted anywhere in the county except REM-35 (most remote zoning) and RR-2 (2-acre rural residential.)

Question: Can Park County legally ban data centers and crypto-mining enterprises? Or is the county only legally empowered to regulate? If the county can prevent these industries, it is my opinion that we should ban them entirely. If we can only regulate them, then they should be confined to industrial zoning.

A data center near Billings, as proposed, would consume 5,000 acres, as well as eyeball-rattling volumes of both water and electricity. The downside of these industries is game-changing for communities and entire landscapes. A Heavy Load Electric User will raise the cost of electricity to other users, as well as increase the chances of equipment-damaging voltage fluctuations on the grid. 

Citizens of Park County need to be aware of this threat to our way of life, and be proactive to keep these industries out if we can. The county has limited say over development schemes on state or federal land (example: the new shooting complex making an end-run around our existing zoning regulations.) However if we act now, and demand the maximum land-use restriction for this type of industry, we may be able to protect our landscapes, our water, and our electric supply for the next generations.

Sincerely,

Linda Raynolds

Cody