Socorro County
Second New Mexico county to restrict data centres, preceding Sierra County's moratorium.
Last refreshed: 25 July 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Why did Socorro County pause the Green Data mega-project?
Timeline for Socorro County
Mentioned in: Sierra County joins New Mexico revolt
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashBackground
Socorro County commissioners unanimously approved a one-year moratorium on new data-centre development, prompted by opposition to Green Data's proposed 10,000-acre solar farm and data-centre campus between the towns of Socorro and Magdalena. A Blue Ribbon Committee was formed to study the issue during the pause.
The project had been floated in potential partnership with New Mexico Tech, but was paused a week before the county vote after a town-hall meeting drew heavy public opposition; the university's president said New Mexico Tech did not control enough contiguous land to host the campus alone. Residents raised concerns about water resources, ranch land and the nearby Very Large Array radio observatory.
Socorro was the second New Mexico county to act, after Santa Fe and before Sierra, part of a wider county-level revolt that has prompted state lawmakers to pledge a statewide moratorium bill for the 2027 legislative session.
