A New Mexico climate justice organization said emergency rulings by the state Supreme Court related to construction of a massive artificial intelligence data center are a hopeful sign.
The court recently issued two orders to pause a well water permit and a proposed air quality permit for Doña Ana County’s Project Jupiter. Both orders came in response to petitions from environmental groups alleging a lack of due process.
Jonathan Juarez, campaign organizer for the group Youth United for Climate Crisis Action, believes some developers view New Mexico as the next place to “cash in” without addressing citizen concerns.
“This is just the first step in slowing this process down to a pace where our communities can actually meaningfully participate in the process and receive access to information about what they're being asked to live with in the long term,” Juarez explained.
Project Jupiter would be one of the largest AI infrastructure complexes in the nation. Data centers can deplete local water supplies, even as New Mexico’s decades-long drought continues.
Following the ruling, primary backer Oracle said it remains committed to developing Project Jupiter responsibly and protecting local resources.
In a pitch to local officials, AI proponents promised high-paying jobs and tax revenue. But critics countered data centers are not labor-intensive, and once they’re built, they employ anywhere from dozens to a few hundred permanent workers.
Sayrah Namaste, New Mexico program co-director for the American Friends Service Committee, said there are unanswered questions about the Santa Teresa campus.
“The big thing they promise is jobs for local people and yet Project Jupiter missed two deadlines for jobs reports. So, I like this idea of a moratorium. Let's pause and see the impact before these things are fast-tracked,” Namaste urged.
Juarez stressed it is important for young people to pay attention to AI issues, because they will inherit the consequences of decisions being made now.
“We're talking about AI infrastructure on a scale that our country has never seen before and a scale that New Mexico has never seen before,” Juarez noted.
According to Juarez, environmental assessments and permit filings show Project Jupiter could produce more annual greenhouse gas emissions than Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Las Cruces — the state’s three largest cities — combined.
