Brunswick Town Council on Monday night approved a 180-day pause on the development of large-scale data centers after Gov. Janet Mills vetoed a bill that would have temporarily restricted such developments statewide.

With Monday’s vote, Brunswick joins several other Maine towns and cities considering measures to slow the development of data centers.

The moratorium gives the town 180 days to gather information on the impact of data centers and to set regulations on their development.

During the moratorium period, the town will not process any applications or permitting requests for new or expanded data centers with electrical capacities of 1 megawatt or greater.

Several residents, along with Rep. Poppy Arford, D-Brunswick, expressed their support for the moratorium Monday night and encouraged strong limits on data centers.

The moratorium closely mirrors other temporary policies being considered in towns and cities including Westbrook, which uses the same law firm as Brunswick.

Brunswick has an existing, smaller-scale data center on Brunswick Landing, owned by internet company FirstLight, that town leaders have said has not been an issue and does not store artificial intelligence data.

Town officials have not indicated that there are any proposals for larger data centers on the horizon in Brunswick.

Meanwhile, other municipalities, including Sanford and Scarborough, are considering data center moratoriums in response to already proposed projects.

Data centers house computers to store data and run online applications and services. They have existed for decades, but new developments in AI technology have increased demand for the sites.

Proponents argue that the facilities can create jobs, lower tax burden and drive economic growth in Maine; opponents argue that they suck up resources like water and electricity, driving up utility bills and polluting the surrounding environment.

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