SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ — Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman and state Sen. Andrew Zwicker are asking the state not to approve the air permit for the data center under construction on Route 1 in South Brunswick in its current form. Their request comes on the last day for public comment.
In a joint letter to state Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Ed Potosnak, the two lawmakers say the DEP may be undercounting how much pollution the site's 12 diesel backup generators could release. They also say the agency hasn't made its analysis public.
"We respectfully request that DEP not issue the permit in its current form," the letter said. "We are not asking DEP to prejudge the application. We are asking for a complete, transparent review that protects public health and gives residents confidence that the law will be enforced."
The letter is dated Nov. 2. Watson Coleman's office announced it Monday. The public comment period on the draft permit closes the same day.
The draft permit covers 12 diesel-powered emergency generators, each rated at 3,620 kilowatts. It limits routine testing and maintenance to 28 hours a year per generator.
But the permit "places no limit on hours of emergency operation," the lawmakers wrote. They asked whether the DEP's health risk assessment and its classification of the site as a "minor source" of pollution rely only on those 28 hours.
"If they do, the analysis understates the facility's potential to emit," the letter said. "The 28-hour limit is enforceable; nothing comparable limits emergency operation."
The lawmakers asked the DEP to redo its calculations assuming at least 500 hours of operation per generator. Otherwise, they said, the state should write an enforceable cap on emergency use into the permit.
The DEP has said its health risk assessment found the risk "negligible." The letter says that finding has to rest on "a complete, publicly reviewable analysis before any permit is issued." It asks the DEP to explain in plain language how the assessment accounted for nearby homes, schools, existing pollution, the weather, and several generators running at once.
"The analysis must address all neighboring communities because emissions do not stop at municipal borders," the letter said.
The draft permit covers 12 generators, but the letter notes that public statements and reports point to as many as 20 at the site. Organizers of a town hall on Friday, also said 20 generators are planned once the facility is fully running.
The lawmakers asked the DEP to confirm how many generators are planned and whether another application covers the other eight. Whether a facility is classified as a major or minor source depends on all of its equipment, not just what's in a single application, they wrote.
"DEP must evaluate the full project and ensure that separate applications or phases do not avoid requirements that apply to it," the letter said.
The lawmakers also asked the DEP to:
The letter pointed to the DEP's $1.07 million fine against a Vineland data center for running 62 unpermitted generators. It also cited a diesel spill at an Equinix data center in Secaucus in September.
"The same rigor must apply before a permit is issued for the Sentinel Data Center, not after," the letter said.
Watson Coleman, who leaves office in January, introduced the Data Center Community Impact Act in March. The bill would authorize a federal study of how data centers affect the environment, the economy and public health. She is also an original cosponsor of the AI Data Center Moratorium Act.
Zwicker is a primary sponsor of S4659. The state bill would require the DEP to study the environmental impact of data centers in New Jersey and would bar construction of new ones until the study is done.
Last month, Zwicker and Assembly members Roy Freiman and Mitchelle Drulis asked the DEP to extend the public comment period. The DEP agreed, moving the deadline to Monday.
The 341,000-square-foot data center sits on 143 acres at 4405 Route 1, on the former Princeton Nurseries site. The township Planning Board approved it in May 2025.
The draft air permit is in the name of the developer, Sentinel Data Centers. Bloomberg LP confirmed to Patch last month that it is the tenant. A Bloomberg spokesman said the facility is not an AI data center or a hyperscale facility. He said it will use 30 megawatts at peak and that the generators are for emergency backup only.
Opposition has grown in recent months. Princeton's mayor and council asked the DEP to deny the permit, saying emissions could reach town, including near two elementary schools. About 200 people attended the DEP's public hearing on Sept. 23, and roughly 30 testified. More than 150 people packed a town hall at Christ Congregation in Princeton on Friday.
The final decision rests with Potosnak.
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