U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock is calling for a statewide moratorium on new data center construction in Georgia, saying large projects should not move forward until protections are in place for local residents.

Warnock made the call after visiting the proposed site of OpenAI’s Project Camellia in Effingham County, where the company plans a massive 3.2-gigawatt data center. The senator also met with residents who raised concerns about electricity and water costs, noise, light pollution and the amount of information provided to the public before the project moved forward.

Under Warnock’s proposal, a moratorium could be lifted for an individual project if developers guarantee that the data center will not increase residents’ water or electric bills, does not receive what he described as “sweetheart” tax giveaways, does not rely on non-disclosure agreements, does not create air or water pollution, and addresses concerns involving noise and light pollution.

The proposed OpenAI development represents a $20 billion investment and would require approximately 3,200 megawatts of electricity. Georgia Power says OpenAI will pay the full cost of the electric infrastructure and service required for the project. OpenAI has also said it plans to use closed-loop cooling to limit ongoing water consumption and provide $80 million in community benefits.

The debate comes as data center development continues to expand across Georgia. Supporters point to economic development, investment and potential tax benefits, while opponents have raised questions about electricity demand, water use, environmental impacts and whether local residents have enough involvement in decisions about where the facilities are built.

Warnock said those concerns should be addressed before additional projects move forward, arguing that communities need greater transparency and stronger protections when negotiating with large data center developers.