Oregon's Governor Tina Kotek has ordered state environmental regulators to temporarily stop issuing pollution permits to data centers. Governor Kotek directed Oregon Department of Environmental Quality director Leah Feldon to pause all air and water pollution permits for new or expanding data centers until July 2027.
The pause also includes applications from municipalities seeking to renew or modify wastewater treatment plant permits to accommodate wastewater discharge from data centers. Kotek said the pause will provide an opportunity to evaluate recommendations from the Data Center Advisory Committee.
Kotek had already directed state agencies to pause land transactions for data center projects until July 2027. In August, Kotek blocked the land sale of 32 acres at the Mill Creek Corporate Center in southeast Salem for a proposed data center project by Verrus.
Non-profit Food and Water Watch called the move a massive victory that would give communities breathing room from more data center development.