1
00:00:00,534 --> 00:00:01,001
On the issues

2
00:00:01,068 --> 00:00:02,836
which you also polled on

3
00:00:02,903 --> 00:00:04,738
data centers, as we all know

4
00:00:04,805 --> 00:00:07,274
are a hot topic right now.

5
00:00:07,674 --> 00:00:08,275
You looked

6
00:00:08,342 --> 00:00:09,610
at how people viewed

7
00:00:09,676 --> 00:00:10,911
the cost-benefit analysis

8
00:00:10,978 --> 00:00:11,678
of them.

9
00:00:11,745 --> 00:00:13,247
Your results show respondents

10
00:00:13,313 --> 00:00:14,648
from all parties think

11
00:00:14,715 --> 00:00:17,284
the costs outweigh the benefits.

12
00:00:17,351 --> 00:00:19,019
But who wins the day here?

13
00:00:19,086 --> 00:00:20,153
Public opinion

14
00:00:20,220 --> 00:00:21,889
or moneyed interests?

15
00:00:21,955 --> 00:00:23,123
Well, moneyed interests

16
00:00:23,190 --> 00:00:24,491
are certainly important

17
00:00:24,558 --> 00:00:26,693
and the development of

18
00:00:26,994 --> 00:00:27,761
these centers

19
00:00:27,828 --> 00:00:29,663
is an economic priority

20
00:00:29,730 --> 00:00:31,665
for a whole industry.

21
00:00:32,032 --> 00:00:33,066
But the public has

22
00:00:33,133 --> 00:00:34,401
not been convinced.

23
00:00:34,468 --> 00:00:35,502
I think the proponents

24
00:00:35,569 --> 00:00:37,504
of data centers have failed

25
00:00:37,571 --> 00:00:39,673
to convince the public

26
00:00:39,740 --> 00:00:41,708
that those benefits are real.

27
00:00:41,775 --> 00:00:42,976
People recognize

28
00:00:43,043 --> 00:00:44,745
that technical jobs

29
00:00:44,811 --> 00:00:45,979
and tax revenue

30
00:00:46,046 --> 00:00:46,813
for communities

31
00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:48,815
are important benefits

32
00:00:48,882 --> 00:00:51,051
but they look at water usage

33
00:00:51,118 --> 00:00:53,353
as a big concern, a cost.

34
00:00:54,154 --> 00:00:55,155
They also are concerned

35
00:00:55,222 --> 00:00:56,423
about electricity.

36
00:00:56,490 --> 00:00:57,558
Maybe surprisingly

37
00:00:57,624 --> 00:00:58,458
the second biggest

38
00:00:58,525 --> 00:00:59,326
cost people point to

39
00:00:59,393 --> 00:01:00,727
is developing AI

40
00:01:00,794 --> 00:01:02,429
and saying we shouldn't develop

41
00:01:02,496 --> 00:01:04,131
artificial intelligence.

42
00:01:04,198 --> 00:01:05,866
So there's a real

43
00:01:06,700 --> 00:01:08,035
need to communicate

44
00:01:08,101 --> 00:01:09,236
with voters

45
00:01:09,303 --> 00:01:10,170
about what

46
00:01:10,237 --> 00:01:12,439
those benefits are or

47
00:01:13,340 --> 00:01:15,108
the critics end up

48
00:01:15,375 --> 00:01:17,244
with the upper hand on this.

49
00:01:17,311 --> 00:01:18,679
And we've seen a big movement

50
00:01:18,745 --> 00:01:20,214
away from data centers since

51
00:01:20,280 --> 00:01:23,083
October, when we first asked.