Activist groups appeal Mississippi approval of xAI turbines

SOUTHAVEN, Miss. (WMC) - Several activist groups are appealing the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality's decision to grant an air permit for xAI's facility in Southaven.

The Southern Environmental Law Center, on behalf of the NAACP, Young Gifted & Green, and the Safe and Sound Coalition, filed the appeal Thursday.

The permit will allow xAI to use dozens of methane gas turbines to help power its nearby Colossus 2 data center on Tulane Road, located just across state lines in Memphis.

The groups claim xAI's power plant will release "staggering amounts of air pollution and harmful chemicals like formaldehyde."

"Data centers cannot be built on the backs of at-risk communities. Colossus 2 unnecessarily endangers the health of our neighbors and doesn't represent progress, as MDEQ claims -- it's a violation of the public trust," said Abre' Conner, NAACP Director of Environmental and Climate Justice. "The NAACP has consistently challenged MDEQ's lack of transparency and stands with residents within the region. We continue to call for the prioritization of people over billionaires and unvetted corporate expansion."

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