'This is our water': Hundreds of Utahns rally against proposed Box Elder data center

SALT LAKE CITY — Christaline Cornell, of American Fork, braved the heat Saturday with her infant son to stand on the steps of the Capitol and protest the Stratos Project, saying his future is the reason she had to attend.

"The water, the food, the planet, the environment — we can't get that back once we take it away," she said.

More than 600 people rallied at the Utah Capitol on Saturday afternoon, calling for an end to the proposed data center development in Box Elder County.

The Stratos development is projected to cover around 40,000 acres, but developers have explained the campus at full build-out will occupy approximately 10,000 to 13,000 acres, and of that, roughly 7,500 acres will be preserved as open space. Over the long haul, the plans call for a data center intended primarily for military needs and a power-generating network to serve it, capable of generating 7.5-9 gigawatts of power when completed.

The project has prompted outcry from many across Utah since it was first announced.

Critics of the project cite concerns that the development was rushed through proposals and that it could tax northern Utah's limited water supplies, reduce the flow of water into the Great Salt Lake, and raise the temperature in the area around the operation. A recent Deseret News-Hinckley Institute of Politics poll revealed a majority of Utah voters are opposed to the project.

The Box Elder County Commission on May 4 gave the green light to the controversial data center proposal put forward by Canadian entrepreneur Kevin O'Leary, who touts the importance of the facility to national security.

People of all ages from the Idaho-Utah border down to Payson gathered on the Capitol steps Saturday, holding signs that detailed water concerns, claimed sharks are not welcome in Utah (O'Leary was made famous on "Shark Tank"), voiced anti-AI sentiments and expressed frustration at local politicians — most frequently Gov. Spencer Cox, who initiated an executive order Friday for the state's drought status.

"For our children, air, water and land, we'll keep on fighting and take a stand," people chanted.

Julie Newland and Carolyn Lenzie, from Box Elder County, were at the commission meeting when the project was approved. They said they are "actively seeing lies" from officials about the impacts of the project.

"Our Great Salt Lake is dying, and when it dies, we are going to die with it," Lenzie said. Newland added that she hasn't met a single person in the county yet who wants the data center.

Shannon Barton, of Box Elder Accountability Referendum, commonly known as BEAR, shared her experience of "mama bears" coming together to fight against the data center.

"Something really special is happening in Box Elder and around Utah. ... It is the most unifying thing I've ever seen. In a day of political division, regular people are coming together, regardless of who they voted for in the last election," she said.

Barton said there are more than 20 proposed data centers in the state, and "we need to stop every single one," which received loud cheers from the crowd.

"I've always considered myself a sissy, but the mama bears of Box Elder are scaring Kevin O'Leary," Barton said. "What we have is precious ... we are just fighting this thing. It is not going to happen."

Part of the rally was to get people to sign referendums, register to vote and send messages to local officials.

"This is our water, not a Canadian billionaire('s). .... We feel this has been rushed, too, and it's been shocking to us as well," said Utah State House Minority Leader Angela Romero. "We continue to fight for you up here. We might be the superminority, but we're here because of you."

Romero said it may be a long process to stop the project, but every person's actions count toward the end result.

Utah State University professor Patrick Belmont emphasized everyone has a role to play in helping protect Utah's environment. He said it is so important people speak up about the environment because that makes all the difference for the future generations' lives.

"We want children to look back and know that when the pressure was intense and the money was loud, people stood up for them. This is how we build a world that is worthy of all those who come next," Belmont said.

The outpouring of opposition has prompted skepticism from O'Leary, the main force behind the controversial project, who has characterized the critics as paid "professional protestors" being bused in from other states and suggested local advocates are linked to the Chinese Communist Party, or CCP.

Paul Palandjian, CEO of O'Leary Digital, pushed back on that slightly, saying they don't believe anyone is acting as a foreign agent or on behalf of a foreign government, but instead the "Utah progressive advocacy network" is being funded by "a structure currently under active federal scrutiny."

In dozens of interviews conducted during Saturday's rally, every person said they came from a Utah city. Each person told KSL they were not paid to be there and that they had instead paid money in gas to drive down from Box Elder and other counties.

Dan Ogden held a sign that joked he was "bused in" from South Jordan. He said he voted for Cox but has been disappointed in how the governor has handled this situation.

He pointed to how leaders have emphasized the need to speed up development so the U.S. can stay ahead of China. It feels like government officials are "trying to pull a fast one" on Utahns, he added.

"It's very suspicious … to try to rush the largest data center in the world, into our community, without environmental studies. …. Some people must be getting paid," he said.

Ogden's son Wyatt had a sign that said "Kevin thinks I'm a Chinese operative." When asked if he and his dad had any connection to the communist party, he adamantly said, "No, we are not."

"Utahns are much smarter than (Kevin) thinks, and we care about this state, the health of this state and its future," Wyatt Ogden said.

Related topics