New Jersey slaps $1.1M penalty on data center after aerial drone photos reveal 62 hidden gas generators

New Jersey has issued its largest-ever enforcement action against a data center, ordering developer DataOne to pay a $1.1 million fine after 45 of 62 gas generators were found running at a major planned site without any air permits. The penalty underscores a growing tension: as AI drives data center construction across the US, communities near these facilities are increasingly exposed to the pollution that keeps the servers humming.

The Investigation That Started It All

The case began drawing public attention in August, when an investigation by The Guardian and Floodlight News published thermal drone footage of the DataOne site. The imagery showed 45 of the site's 62 gas generators actively operating.

None of the generators had the permits New Jersey requires for units with 37-kilowatt capacity or higher. The violation wasn't marginal: the units were running at 1,982-kilowatt capacities, more than 50 times the state's permitting threshold.

Why Regulators Stepped In

New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) tracks gas generators like these because they emit carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and other combustion-related pollutants. According to DEP officials, those pollutants can worsen asthma, trigger heart attacks, and cause early deaths—health risks that matter most to people living closest to the facility.

DEP Commissioner Ed Potosnak called the enforcement action "by far the largest ever taken against a data center in New Jersey," and vowed that data centers would not be "constructed or operated with impunity in this state."

The Fine—and What Critics Say It Misses

The penalty comes with a 45-day deadline: DataOne must apply for the required permits or cease operations. But the company can keep running the gas engines while its applications are pending, a detail that has frustrated local advocates.

Nichole Gardner, co-chair of the local environmental nonprofit Sustain SJ, told Ars that the action is "insufficient, both in dollar amount and enforcement. The DataOne site should be made to discontinue operations during the 45-day period until the proper permits are issued."

DataOne, for its part, appeared unbowed. In a statement to The New York Times, a company spokesperson said, "We will apply for the air permits for the temporary generators," while noting that DataOne "disagreed" with the fine. The spokesperson added that the generators are temporary: the data center is "transitioning to low-emission, quiet fuel cells."

What Comes Next

The site is now in a compliance window that will test how strictly New Jersey enforces its rules against the booming data center industry. Watch for whether DataOne files its permit applications within 45 days, how the DEP handles any application review, and whether the promised shift to fuel cells actually retires the gas engines—or whether regulators face pressure to impose stronger consequences if violations continue.