State regulators recently told Amazon their data center near New Carlisle has violated two air emissions permits for their diesel back-up generators.
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s South Bend regional office notified Amazon of the violations in a letter June 8. The agency’s Office of Air Quality found that Amazon had installed two generators rated for 1,600 kilowatts but had only been approved to install 1,500-kilowatt generators.
The company also failed to submit an Affidavit of Construction prior to operating emission units, which is a permit violation. In another violation, exhaust temperature sensors in their emissions control system failed on four separate dates in November and December.
Ben Inskeep is program director at the nonprofit Citizens Action Coalition, which is calling for a statewide data center moratorium.
“It fits a pattern that we’ve seen with Amazon with noncompliance with their permits Amazon is not above the law and they don’t get to have special rules just for them because they’re a large tech company.”
IDEM states in the letters that Amazon says “corrective actions are ongoing.” The agency says it will not take legal action at this time but it may in the future if Amazon violates its permits again.
