The following is a transcript of remarks at the Berlin Township (PA) supervisors’ meeting by John Pace, township resident and a frequent contributor to the River Reporter opinion pages.

Berlin Township Supervisors Meeting

Tuesday, June 16, 2026

My name is John Pace and I live in Berlin Township. I’ll be brief.

I want to thank the supervisors for their efforts on this Data Center (DC) ordinance.

I believe the ordinance is largely successful in bringing coherence and mitigation to what is potentially a terrible “development” in our midst. Actually, if you live locally, DCs erected in your vicinity will be life altering.

I never thought we would be discussing an ordinance with allowable limits on nuclear radiation, water depletion, massive diesel generator backup, topographic degeneration, allowable day/night noise levels, heat radiation, light intensities, etc.

But perhaps, what is not in this document is more telling than what is.

For example, there are no restrictions on plot size or the number of DC “campus” structures. The DC proposal in neighboring Clinton Township is for 22 massive buildings on 800 acres, and yet, nationally, as these things go, that Clinton DC is actually a “small” campus.

I am not a lawyer, but at the township level it seems that any substantive restrictions or even a moratorium on construction will likely be superseded by state law, where at that level of government, deluded Democratic and Republican politicians are currently falling over themselves to incentivize DC construction.  

But, other than state and national politicians and a few fabulously wealthy billionaire investors, it may be hard to find many residents that support the construction of Data Centers and certainly not in their own local communities. 

In neighboring NY state, a 1-year moratorium on DCs was legislatively enacted and signed by the governor. In Monterey Park, CA a referendum was passed by 88% of voters to permanently ban Data Centers. Likewise, in PA, we need our state and national representatives to step up and act decisively on this critical issue (and not run away from it). 

Finally, to tonight’s point, I believe, at the local level; the Berlin Township supervisors are acting responsibly by enacting this ordinance and their effort has my support. I urge others to do the same.

Thank you.