Cherokee Nation Bans Hyperscale Data Center Projects on Tribal-Owned Lands

The Cherokee Nation is joining the growing backlash against massive data center projects fueled by the AI boom.

Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. announced earlier this month that the Nation is banning hyperscale data center projects on land owned by or held in trust for the Cherokee Nation.

The decision follows a report from the Nation’s Data Center Task Force examining the economic, environmental, cultural, and community impacts of these developments across the Cherokee Nation Reservation. The report described hyperscale data centers as facilities that often span more than 10,000 square feet and require more than 100 megawatts of power.

As part of its report, the task force surveyed 1,593 Cherokee Nation citizens. About 64% said they opposed the construction of hyperscale data centers within the reservation.

The report raised concerns about the enormous amounts of energy and water these facilities can consume, as well as their potential impacts on air quality, cultural resources, and noise and light pollution.

It also questioned how much long-term employment communities actually get in return. While data center projects can create temporary construction jobs, the report said that once completed, they are “among the least labor-intensive large structures in the economy.” It noted that hyperscale facilities, the size of small towns, can employ only around 100 people once they are up and running.

Another concern raised by the task force is that it can be difficult to determine how many new data centers are actually in the works.

The task force said there is no comprehensive state or federal system for tracking planned data center projects and that different databases provide inconsistent estimates.

That lack of transparency can make it harder for communities and tribal governments to get involved early. The report said some projects remain under discussion behind non-disclosure agreements, limiting the public from being able to provide their input.

As a result, Chief Hoskin said Cherokee Nation will not support any hyperscale data center development on non-tribal land inside the reservation unless developers conduct “robust” consultation with the tribe.

“Our primary responsibility is to protect our citizens and tribal communities from these threats, so we will not support any hyperscale data centers on our reservation without proper consultation,” Chief Hoskin said in a statement . “We want these companies to know that we expect them to engage with us early and transparently, as these projects impact every Cherokee.”

The Cherokee Nation is not the first tribal government to push back against data centers. The Seminole Nation approved a moratorium on data centers in March, while the Kickapoo Tribe declared their opposition to these projects in July.

The backlash comes as major tech companies like Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and OpenAI are pouring billions of dollars into the infrastructure needed to train and run increasingly powerful AI models.