AI data centers get talked about for water use and electricity. Noise rarely makes the list. But residents living near facilities in Vineland, NJ and Southaven, MS are recording constant industrial sound running 15 to 20 decibels above EPA health thresholds, around the clock, with no relief in sight. Neither community had meaningful say in what was built next to them. Here's what the research shows, what the law actually allows, and what residents can do about it.

Every AI prompt triggers real energy and water use inside data centers, and when that demand scales to billions of prompts per day, the costs don't disappear. They show up as higher utility bills and strained water supplies in communities that had no say in the decision. This piece breaks down exactly how that link works, and what people can do about it.