Ever since the first tweets that a data center would be built in the Roanoke Valley, residents have had many questions about Google’s proposed campus in Voettourt County.
Cardinal News strives to provide answers to your questions using information from the county, the West Virginia Water Authority, public announcements and interviews with stakeholders.
We will continue to update this list and provide more answers as we receive more questions from readers and more information about our projects becomes available.
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project
Q: Who owns the land? How big will the data center be?
A: Google signed a $14 million contract with Botetourt County on June 20 for 312 acres of land in the Greenfield Industrial Park. There, it would build a data center campus that would include three data centers, three substations, office buildings, access roads, utilities, parking and stormwater management facilities, according to a March 10 Army Corps of Engineers notice seeking public comment on the project.
The three proposed data center buildings would each cover approximately 300,000 square feet, according to the notice.
The project will use most of the remaining available land at the 750-acre greenfield center, which currently houses six other businesses and the Boettourt County administrative offices.
The industrial park’s zoning was changed in November 2024 to allow for a data center.
Q: When will construction actually start?
A: Google said in late March that it hoped to break ground on the project this spring or summer. Amber Tillman, Google’s head of data center communications, said in an interview that construction of the data center will take 18 to 24 months, and the project will be completed in stages as resources become available.
Google representatives did not respond to questions about when the first part of the project is expected to go live.
water
Q: Where does the water come from?
A: Water, at least in the first phase of the project, will be drawn from Carvin’s Cove, one of four reservoirs that provide water to Franklin, Voateur and Roanoke counties. city of roanoke. The towns of Boone’s Mill and Vinton are served by the West Virginia Water Authority.
Botetourt County and Google both said they have committed to funding a long-range water supply study conducted by the water board to explore options such as adding water sources and reusing water.
Q: Why do I need water for my project? Are there other options?
A: Data centers use water to cool equipment. Some data centers use non-potable water and could use air instead, but Vorttourt County Board of Supervisors Chairman Mac Scorsone said air cooling can be noisier than water.
Tillman said Google will use the most energy-efficient methods for cooling.
Google says the water available at the facility contains low levels of total dissolved solids, allowing the cooling system to be recirculated multiple times, reducing the total amount of water needed.
Q: How much water will this project use?
A: The agreement between Boattourt and the West Virginia Water Authority states that an estimated 2 million gallons of water per day will be available at the start of the project, increasing to up to 8 million gallons per day with potential expansion of the project. Google’s data center will become the water authority’s biggest customer, Mike McEvoy, the agency’s executive director, said last year.
The Calvins Cove water treatment facility produces approximately 10 million to 12 million gallons of water per day and has the capacity to treat 24 million gallons per day, water department spokeswoman Sarah Baumgardner said in an email. Combined with all water sources, the water authority has the capacity to treat 56 million gallons of water per day.
In an interview on March 18, Scothorne said it was “very unlikely” that Google would use 2 million gallons of water per day, and said that estimate would be during periods of “hottest, most extreme” temperatures.
Botetourt’s website echoes this, saying that Google “reserves” 2 million gallons per day, understanding that actual daily water usage is often lower than that reserved capacity.
Q: Can I access water from a private well?
A: Yes — Boattourt County’s website states that private, residential, and agricultural wells in the county are not connected to Carvin’s Cove.
The site says the wells draw water from groundwater aquifers, where rainfall collects and is absorbed directly into the ground beneath homes and businesses.
Carbins Cove, on the other hand, is fed by surface rainfall runoff from surrounding mountains and streams, the site said. The site says both systems work independently and respond differently to rainfall.
The Google project uses water from Carbins Cove, not from a groundwater aquifer.
Q: Why is the county considering other water sources?
A: Water planning takes place decades before new systems come online and requires significant funding and community cooperation.
McEvoy said last year that the water board expects to need additional water sources in the Roanoke Valley within about 35 years, regardless of whether Google announces plans for a data center campus.
The next update to the water supply plan is not scheduled until 2029, but staff are currently working on it, according to the water board’s website.
McEvoy said officials decided it was a good idea to start planning early because Google’s entry would bring in more money from data center tax revenue and technology companies.
Tillman said Google will work with water authorities to support ongoing research at Virginia Tech that studies watershed health and improvements to support regional water supplies.
environment and energy
Q: What impact will this project have on the environment?
A: This project is expected to have an environmental impact, but it is unclear at this time what that impact will be.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District, received a permit application from Google for “Project Raspberry” (a data center project) and solicited public comment on the work in a March public notice. This notice contains environmental information from Google that has not yet been verified or evaluated to ensure compliance with the Code.
The project will have “permanent impacts” on approximately 3 acres of non-tidal wetlands and approximately 7,000 linear feet of stream channel in connection with site clearing and infrastructure construction, according to the notice.
The notice also states that Google estimates that five wetland mitigation credits and 7,000 stream mitigation credits will be needed.
Through the Virginia Wetland Restoration Trust Fund program, administered jointly with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Nature Conservancy, and the Virginia DEQ, developers can purchase mitigation credits to offset the environmental impacts of their projects. Conservancies then use those funds for large-scale restoration and conservation projects in areas deemed high priority for conservation.
The project includes the removal of approximately 120 acres of forest habitat within the range of the endangered Indiana bat, according to the public notice.
Although there is no known habitat within a half-mile of the project area, Google has imposed a restriction on all tree removal from Oct. 15 to March 31 to comply with federal regulations to protect roosting bats, according to the notice. The Corps said in the notice that it has determined that while the project “may impact” Indiana bats, it is “unlikely to have an adverse impact.”
A water quality certificate from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality may be required. In such cases, management is responsible for determining whether releases from the facility may impact water quality in neighboring jurisdictions.
Q: How much energy will this project use? And where will that energy come from?
A Google spokesperson said the company does not share the site’s entire energy capacity. However, we do know that Google has announced plans to buy all the electricity generated by the Rocky Forge wind farm in Voattourt County in 2024.
A Google spokesperson said in late March that the 79 megawatts provided by the wind farm would not cover the full capacity needed for the data center campus.
costs and revenue
Q: Who is paying for the project?
A: Botetourt County and Google have agreed to pay for various pieces of infrastructure and future water plans.
In September, the authority’s board approved two agreements regarding water infrastructure and future water supplies.
The agreement with Botetourt County provides that the county will provide funding to authorities to research and develop new water sources to ensure an adequate water supply in the future. The agreement with Google stipulates that the company will pay the agency to develop new “sustainable” water infrastructure solutions, according to the agency’s website.
Under the agreement with the county, Botetourt will pay up to 100% of the total cost of the water project, up to $100 million, and a lower percentage of up to $400 million. McEvoy said last year that the county could incur such costs if the need for an entirely new reservoir arose.
Bottour was required to be the party signing the contract, but the county now plans to create a separate contract with Google that specifies how the company will pay proportionately for the amount of water needed, County Administrator Gary Lareau said. He said the supervisory board intends to take up the agreement “as soon as possible” and is waiting for lawyers to take over the agreement.
The agreement also provides for the county to make specific short-term payments of $8 million to water authorities in a fund to develop new water sources. The water department’s website says the department is researching “new water supplies and infrastructure improvements” through funding from both the county and Google.
A Google spokesperson said in late March that there was no new information to share about the total cost of the project.
Google said in a press release issued in late March that it is committed to paying 100% of the costs associated with powering the project and has agreed to pay for the infrastructure required for the project. A Google spokesperson said it’s too early to say exactly what infrastructure this effort will include.
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