Newsday/Siena poll: More Long Islanders back 1-year moratorium on data centers

ALBANY — Nearly half of Long Islanders support slowing the development of large data centers, according to the results of a Newsday/Siena Research Institute poll, which highlighted growing concerns among New Yorkers.

Data centers house the physical infrastructure for data storage, and technology giants say they are vital to the growing use of artificial intelligence.

The poll found 47% of Long Islanders back a bill passed by the State Legislature on June 4 that would put a one-year pause on the permitting of large data centers. One in three, about 34%, said they were either in the middle, didn’t know enough or refused to answer the question. About 19% of Long Islanders said they thought a moratorium is bad for New York.

Statewide, the results mirrored those on Long Island with 46% of New Yorkers saying a moratorium would be good for the state, 21% saying it would be bad, and 33% saying they were in the middle, didn’t know or refused to answer, according to the poll.

"Communities that are making this decision are focused on this. You’re weighing jobs, energy uses, the effect on water," Don Levy, executive director of the Siena Research Institute, told Newsday. Underneath those concerns is the question about AI and whether people feel it is going to be beneficial or they are threatened by it, he said.

The Newsday poll was done in conjunction with the Siena Research Institute between June 17 and 23 among 412 registered voters on Long Island. The margin of error was 6.1%, meaning answers may vary by that amount. The regional survey was taken as a subsection of a statewide Siena poll that surveyed 1,120 voters and has a margin of error of 3.6%

The poll comes as hundreds of large-scale data centers are popping up around the country and municipalities across the state and Island weigh the benefits and potential negative impacts of the centers on their communities. A large-scale data center is being proposed in Yaphank.

Developers have touted the need for data centers, as well as the community investment and jobs they bring, largely through the construction of the facilities.

But there are growing concerns over their massive energy consumption and use of water for cooling purposes, which put pressure on infrastructure, increase utility rates and raise questions surrounding environmental impact.

If the bill is signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul, New York would be the first state to put a moratorium on the development of more large-scale data centers.

Jennifer Fowkes, 58, of East Hampton, told Newsday she is "really grateful" to the legislature for passing a moratorium. "There’s so much fear, misinformation, misunderstanding," said the Democrat who participated in the poll.

Fowkes said the issue needs to be studied and expressed particular concern over the impact on water use and quality because Suffolk County sits on a sole source aquifer. "I don't think a year is long enough," she said, but "it’s a great start."

The question on data centers particularly "stands out," because one-third of respondents statewide and on the Island say either they are torn, or they don’t have enough knowledge to have an opinion, Levy said. "Certainly, to whatever extent this is a political issue, they could be wooed."

The proposed moratorium comes as Hochul and all 213 legislative seats are up for election in November. The Democratic governor is being challenged by Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.

Republican Matt Trudden, 50, of Greenlawn, told Newsday he hasn’t looked into the issue.

"I really can't make a decision on it," said Trudden, who participated in the poll.

Shuli Mashieh, of Great Neck, who isn’t affiliated with a party, also said she doesn’t have enough information to form an opinion.

"If I had to guess, I would say the fact that they are putting a moratorium on it is a good idea until we find out what are the harms to the local neighborhoods," she told Newsday. And if large-scale data centers are allowed, Mashieh said, they should have to contribute to the community or "somehow return some of the profit to the area."