Fairbanks rally set for July 18 to oppose proposed Alaska data centers

A Fairbanks rally against proposed data center development in Alaska is scheduled for Saturday, July 18, from 7 to 8 p.m. at the Northern Alaska Environmental Center, 830 College Rd. The organizing group, Alaskans for Data Center Accountability, cites 15 proposed data centers statewide as the reason to mobilize.

Two proposals are documented in public records. The Department of the Air Force announced in April 2026 that it was moving forward with steps to potentially build AI data centers at three Alaska installations. "The DAF is offering approximately 4,700 acres of underutilized land across Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Eielson Air Force Base, and Clear Space Force Station." Separately, state legislators have discussed a proposed data center on the North Slope that would use stranded natural gas.

Opponents say the facilities could bring water drawdown, noise, heat, and toxic e-waste. Sen. Loki Tobin said in a May 2026 Alaska State Senate session: "There was a recent story about a data center reducing the water tables in a community. And the community had no idea what was happening until a year later when they had low water pressure. We do not want Alaskans to experience that."

Anchorage adopted a formal permitting framework for data centers in March 2026, requiring conditional use review and utility-capacity confirmation. No comparable statewide framework is in place. The July 18 Fairbanks rally is part of a coordinated statewide day of action, with events also planned in Wasilla and Anchorage.