Misplaced Data

Data center development has run amok. 



The area in Northern Virginia known as "Data Center Alley," for example, is the largest cluster of data centers in the world. That's a problem.

Approximately 70% of the world's daily internet traffic runs through this one area outside Washington, DC. It creates a target for American enemies and adversaries alike, and you don't have to take our word for it. 

Former National Security Administration (NSA) director, Admiral Michael Rogers, made it abundantly clear, “The density of data centers in Northern Virginia could pose a significant vulnerability in the event of a coordinated attack.” He's not the only one.

Former Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff said, "We must consider the national security implications of clustering critical data facilities in one geographic area.” General James Mattis, a former Secretary of Defense, said,"Ensuring the geographical dispersion of data centers is crucial for national defense.” The list goes on.

But how can Americans help ensure the dispersion of data centers actually happens, especially while they are being built on top of each other in places like Data Center Alley?

We can build strategically, as our partner organization, the Rural National Defense Initiative, calls for in the name of our nation's national security interests. Building redundant, high-capacity fiber routes to regional Internet hubs, cloud networks, and local service providers is the key — representing work, effort, and initiative that removes the need for data centers to be built on top of homes — urban, suburban, or rural. (See The Connection Key post.)

The geography of Rural America is the only place with the land area where true dispersion / decentralization of U.S. data centers and data center campuses can happen — and it doesn't mean taking up land owned by individual farmers and ranchers, or destroying family farms. Read The Rural Solution to learn more.