NASHVILLE, Tenn.— The Center for Biological Diversity and the Southern Environmental Law Center submitted a letter to the city of Nashville and developer DC BLOX today detailing concerns about a proposed data center adjacent to the Nashville Zoo. The massive facility would encompass almost 70,000 square feet and use up to 50 megawatts of power.

“Nashville doesn’t want to risk people or wildlife being placed in harm’s way for this data center,” said Laurel Jobe, an attorney at the Center and a Nashville native. “The people have spoken, and they’ve chosen to protect their neighbors, humans and animals alike. Now it’s time for the city and DC BLOX to listen, step up and do the right thing.”

From clouded leopards to the native Nashville crayfish, sensitive species lie just a few hundred feet from the proposed data center’s footprint.

Today’s letter raises concerns about the endangered Nashville crayfish and potential habitat degradation from stormwater runoff into Mill Creek tributaries. Noise and light disturbances from the site could alter breeding patterns and other behaviors as well as heighten animals’ stress responses.

This kind of potential harm to federally protected species would be illegal under the Endangered Species Act. The Act prohibits harassing, harming or significantly disrupting the behavior of a protected species, and violations carry substantial civil and criminal penalties.

Public opposition to the data center has surged in recent weeks, with the Nashville Zoo’s Change.org petition now surpassing 500,000 signatures and thousands of comments from concerned citizens.

Earlier this month, the Metro Nashville Council introduced a bill that would place a temporary moratorium on data centers in Davidson County. The measure must pass three readings before taking effect. However, under a new state law, the DC BLOX data center would be exempt from the moratorium if its building permit application is submitted before the moratorium takes effect.

Regardless of the outcome of the local moratorium, Endangered Species Act obligations are federal requirements. The Center will continue to monitor the project and is prepared to take legal action.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.8 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.