MANASSAS, VA – Activists opposed to data centers in Northern Virginia might now have something else to worry about as they fight their humming, power-guzzling new neighbors: government surveillance.
A coalition of community members, homeowners and historical preservation groups in Prince William County recently took on a data center project backed by the world's largest asset management company and won — so far. The mammoth Digital Gateway data center corridor, which was to be operated by Compass Datacenters and Blackstone-owned QTS, was blocked by state judges, who sided with community groups that said the county government hadn't allowed for proper public feedback.
But now, those local activists could find themselves under government scrutiny.
According to a recent report by Wired, the U.S. government is keeping track of what it describes as “anti-tech violent extremist activity,” including through its dozens of intelligence fusion centers, or state-operated facilities where threat-related data is gathered, analyzed and shared among federal, state, local and tribal authorities.
And while “violent extremist activity” sounds like something a government should keep abreast of, some of the actions the government reports list as “suspicious” are steps any peaceful protestor, activist or researcher might take.
According to Wired, the Northern Virginia Regional Intelligence Center lists "observation/surveillance," "photography" and "expressed/implied threat" as "Suspicious Activity Reporting indicators." The center has reportedly also kept tabs on demonstrations at an Arlington County budget meeting and a Fairfax County School Board meeting.
“I’m not going to be intimidated,” Elena Schlossberg, executive director for the Coalition to Protect Prince William County, told Patch on Wednesday in response to the news.
However, she’s also not surprised at the development. “The industry is like a wounded animal right now,” she said. “They lost the narrative.”
The response by venture capitalist and “Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary to pushback against his proposed billion-dollar, 40,000-acre Stratos project in Utah – calling activists paid agents of China, for example – shows the industry is reeling, she says.
“It’s the height of ridiculousness," she added.
Losing that high-profile fight in Northern Virginia has also left a mark, she thinks.
“They did not take what was happening in Western Prince William seriously,” Schlossberg said. “They thought Blackstone and QTS and Compass would simply crush us with their power and their influence, and what they got back was a kick in the teeth. That fight, and the way that we exercised the ballot box, the process, and the rule of law is what other communities are doing across the country. This is democracy.”
Schlossberg said she’s never suspected that she might be under any surveillance, but she has known that she and the coalition could be vulnerable.
“I joke that the attorney that we have for the Digital Gateway is on speed dial, in case I get dragged away," she said.
But she’s been asked before if she ever worries about agents showing up at her door, and while she’s always laughed about it, “maybe that possibility is growing," though it would be a "total miscalculation" for U.S. intelligence agencies to target what she calls her tiny nonprofit organization of moms and retired people.
The security risk isn’t community groups, it’s the data centers themselves, Schlossberg points out.
“We've been talking about security risks for a long time, not to them, but to us … I mean, if you want to take out, you know, the World Wide Web, you're coming to Northern Virginia. It's scary to live around basically what are targets," she said.
Schlossberg and other citizens wouldn't have to organize like this if their concerns were taken seriously to begin with, she says.
“The fault that we are here is not the citizens' … It's greed and it's arrogance and it's a lack of process and democracy, that's why we are here," she said. "Don't blame the messenger, blame yourselves."
In the meantime, Schlossberg still has faith in the rule of law in Virginia. She says she’s confident the State Supreme Court will rule in favor of community groups should QTS go through with its last-ditch appeal of decisions against the Digital Gateway. “I cannot imagine that the Supreme Court justices will not continue to rule for justice and the law.”
As for possible coming fights over data centers planned for the eastern part of the county, she says, “the community doesn’t want it.”
“The lack of consideration for the community, but also for our water and grid resources, is beyond irresponsible.”
And about government surveillance, she says, “I believe in American democracy, that's why I'm not intimidated.”
“We know that we've done nothing wrong.”
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