5 Data Center Actions!!!!On Monday, June 22, people learned of potential buyers of the Crystal Geyser facility on the outskirts of Mt Shasta city who are interested in using it as a Data Center.  People also have said that the old mill in Weed may be an attractive target for Data Centers.  Both locations are actually under County jurisdiction, which is important to know.   Here is the call to action for everyone in our county about Data Centers.  Please share widely.

1. Attend Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors meeting July 7th, 9 am.

• The ASK is a County declaration/ordinance/resolution blocking Data Centers in our rural areas.
• Meeting is in the Board of Supervisors chambers, 311 Fourth St (2d Floor), Yreka, CA 96097     If you can’t attend in person, it is possible to access the meeting via phone or Google Meets.  Information is available on the website. https://www.siskiyoucounty.gov/supervisors
• If you can’t attend, please submit your concerns and the Ask for blocking Data Centers by emailing or calling.
• You can find your supervisor on the board by going here:  Find My Supervisor
• Find contact info for your supervisor here:  Board of Supervisors | Siskiyou County California

2. Attend Weed City Council meeting July 9, 5:30-6:30 pm and/or Planning Commission meeting July 15, 5:30-6:30  

• Both meetings are at City Hall, 550 Main St, Weed. 
• If you live in Weed and can’t make the meetings, you can call/email your council members.
• Contact info for Mayor and Council members:  Mayor & Council | City Of Weed  
• The ASK is to create an ordinance/resolution/declaration blocking Data Centers, and to address concerns of the empty Mill site.

3. Attend Mt Shasta City Council meeting July 13, 5:30 pm.

• Someone interested in putting a Data Center in the old Crystal Geyser building on the outskirts of Mt Shasta city limits has inquired about the property with the City Manager.   
• The City Manager is reporting on the phone call about this at the next City Council meeting, July 13, 5:30-6:30 pm.
• The ASK is a resolution/ordinance/declaration blocking Data Centers in the city, as well as support for the annexation of this property into the city limits so the city can control what goes in there more easily.
• Location of meeting:  Recreation and Parks District Lodge located at 1315 Nixon Road in Mt. Shasta.
• You can call/email your council and mayor instead of attending meeting, too.  Contact info here.

4. Pledge personally to avoid use of AI in the Internet world.   The data centers are expanding in service to AI. Every time we search the Internet utilizing AI, use Chatgpt, etc, there is an electricity, water, and pollution cost. Those who provide Data Centers are looking for the easiest places to build, which are rural, poor areas.  If we don’t want Data Centers here, it seems like we shouldn’t want them anywhere…

• Install a non-AI browser, like DuckDuckGo.  Within minutes of starting to use it, I felt myself breathe easier without having to wade through all the automatic AI slop that comes up first.  https://noai.duckduckgo.com/   They also have an extension for Microsoft browser.  There are other non-AI browser’s, that’s just the one I settled on.
• Avoid using AI to do things that human brains and bodies can do, such as writing, art, graphic design, and thinking.  If we could be paying a human to do it, or if we can do it ourselves, that’s a hint.
• Read about the issues with AI’s rise within the Internet.  We truly need to look at how much AI is being pushed onto us with every click on a screen.    Stop AI 14 Steps to turn off AI  and 7 Ways to Minimise Generative AI in Your Life & why this matters – Allyson Shaw, Author of Ashes and Stones     

5. Learn more about the environmental impacts of Data Centers. 

• Great place to start is with Erin Brockovich’s website. Yes, that Erin Brockovich!  Brockovich Data Center Reporting – U.S. AI Data Center Awareness & Issue Map

Join us in speaking out, standing up, and protecting our rural communities through activism and collective action. Together, we strengthen community and create lasting change for the betterment of ALL.

Images from All of U.S. June 27!!