The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has temporarily shut down its automated permitting system after environmental watchdog groups discovered that the agency had issued stormwater permits for data center construction projects despite a directive from Gov. Greg Abbott to suspend such approvals.
TCEQ also suspended several permits identified by the groups and began requiring applicants to submit paperwork for staff review rather than relying on automatic electronic authorizations.
The agency announced the changes Wednesday, following reports from Public Citizen and FracTracker Alliance that permits continued to be issued after Abbott ordered a halt to data center-related approvals in September.
The State of Texas Environmental Electronic Reporting System, known as STEERS, processes applications for environmental permits involving air pollution, water quality and other regulated activities. The system also allows businesses to submit operational reports and obtain certain authorizations automatically.
The agency’s online portal was inaccessible Wednesday after TCEQ announced the temporary shutdown.
Abbott’s September directive instructed TCEQ to stop issuing permits related to data center projects while state agencies and the state’s electric grid operator gathered and verified information about the facilities’ anticipated electricity and water demands.
However, Public Citizen and FracTracker Alliance identified multiple stormwater permits they said had been approved for large data center construction projects after the directive took effect.
Construction stormwater permits regulate runoff that can carry sediment, chemicals and other pollutants from development sites into surrounding waterways.
Under TCEQ’s previous automated process, developers could submit notices of intent through STEERS and receive authorization without an initial review by agency personnel.
The watchdog groups said the automated approvals demonstrated shortcomings in the agency’s implementation of the governor’s directive.
FracTracker Alliance also questioned whether the permitting pause could be effectively enforced without additional restrictions.
Sam Law, the organization’s research and communications manager, called for a legislatively established moratorium on data center development, arguing that the permitting problems highlighted weaknesses in the existing approach.
The organizations also identified other types of permits they said TCEQ continued processing after Abbott’s directive.
The dispute comes amid rapid data center development in Texas, where large facilities are raising questions about electricity demand, water consumption and environmental impacts.
The governor’s permitting pause was intended to allow state officials to assess those demands before additional projects received environmental approvals.
TCEQ’s decision to disable automated authorizations means agency personnel must now examine applications to determine whether they involve data center development.
The agency has not announced when the electronic system will resume normal operations or how long the additional review requirements will remain in place.
It also remains unclear how many previously issued permits could be affected or whether TCEQ will suspend additional authorizations as it reviews applications submitted after the governor’s directive.
Photo by Sergei Starostin from Pexels
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