Bonner Data Center
Project overview
A property owner in Bonner has submitted a preliminary application to Missoula County Planning, Development and Sustainability for a proposal to lease the planer building at the Old Bonner Mill to a company planning to establish a data center. The site, generally located at 9314 Bonner Mill Road in the Bonner Mill Industrial Park, is zoned Industrial Center, Heavy. A data center would be an allowed use on the property.
Missoula County has additional zoning regulations that apply to data centers and cryptocurrency operations throughout the county. These include:
All power for the operation must come from a new renewable energy source (meaning it has not been on the market yet)
The operation must recycle all electronic waste
Because it is located within 500 feet of a residential area, the proposal must go through a special exception review to ensure impacts to nearby properties are addressed, including traffic, noise, lighting, landscaping, and screening and buffering
Project process
The project would be subject to approval by the Missoula County Consolidated Land Use Board, not the county commissioners. While the land use board at times only has authority to make recommendations to the commissioners, the board does have final decision-making authority in some cases, including zoning variances, zoning special exceptions and administrative action appeals.
The land use board has authority to approve or deny a proposal to locate a data center within 500 feet of residential use, but the applicant must still secure a zoning compliance permit from the County ensuring they meet the requirements to recycle e-waste and supply the operation with new renewable energy, as required by the cryptocurrency zoning. The board may consider this project in early May at the earliest. The project would also need to get other County permits to operate, such as building and other trade permits. These are subject to administrative review and do not involve a public process.
What is a special exception?
A special exception is defined as an allowed use that meets the intent of the zoning in an area, but which, because of location, scale, required infrastructure or other potential impacts, requires a special degree of consideration and control to ensure it is consistent and compatible with the overall community character.
State law and local regulations require the Board of Adjustment to be the reviewing and approving authority for special exception requests. (The Consolidated Land Board serves as the Board of Adjustment for Missoula County.)
What’s next?
The project is still in its initial stages, and Missoula County has not received a formal application yet, which is typically the point when public engagement starts. Due to heightened public interest though, residents are invited to ask questions and submit comments using the tools below.
County staff attended, but did not organize, a community meeting Friends of 2 Rivers hosted on March 20 in Bonner. If a formal application is received, the public will have a chance to weigh in on this project at a public meeting of the land board. Follow this project page to be notified when a meeting is set.
Who's Listening
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Phone 406-258-4946 -
Climate Action Program Manager
Missoula County Planning, Development and Sustainability
Phone (406) 258-3442
As a community member who lives within a stones throw of the proposed site, I strongly oppose this AI data center.
Negative impacts to the community remain innumerable and unclear, but obvious in their existence. Krambu’s lack of respect for our land, water, and community was clear at the Friends of 2 Rivers meeting.
The people will continue fighting this, so I hope that Mike Heisey will see what is right and decline to move forward with this contract.
I believe the community could come together and support a creative solution to put something in this space that would be beneficial to us all, if the opportunity was given.
This Data center is a bad idea. It does not serve the community. It will use gobs of water destroying the environment, gobs of electricity competing with local residents and creating more pollution. It will employ very few people. It will be noisy for local residents. Training 1 AI model creates as much carbon pollution as 5 lifetimes of a car. One of the creators of this says they won’t expand to full capacity? BS! When has an investor or anyone evolved in this kind of venture stopped short of taking it as far as they can. Do not let this happen!
Absolutely not. Do
Not not let this in!! We are losing our water table every year. This will destroy the river and Bonner. This area is too special to sell is u
It and us out!!
Have we learned nothing from the Berkeley Pit??? Montana is already rife with superfund sites and environmental disasters. And for what? So the rich can get richer while everyone else suffers? This will NOT benefit our community, it will only destroy it. It is unbelievable that this is even being considered!
100% oppose this proposal. The location for one is in a residential area which would not be okay for those who live there. The low grade constant hum would drive anyone crazy. The possible environmental/wildlife effects that could come from the “coolants” is unknown and probably not positive. This does not benefit the community in any way. If this is approved, this just opens the doors for more money hungry companies to come and take all of our resources this great state has to offer. It’s a dangerous line to walk and I really hope Missoula County has some common sense.
AI data centers lower the water table and discharge heavy metals in their wastewater. Many citizens around the country have found that they can't even use their groundwater after datacenters were built nearby as they lower the water table and then leech heavy metals from the cooling towers before discharging that wastewater back into the ground. That wastewater WILL make its way into Bonner resident's wells, as well as the Blackfoot river - one of the lower 48's MOST PRISTINE waterways. Missoula has almost no industry besides tourism, and now this data center wants to put one of the main attractions of our region in danger just to make a buck by hoarding data.
It is entirely possible to create a truly CLOSED loop cooling system using glycol chillers and heat exchangers instead of water cooling towers and fans. Have this company put up the money to install solar and glycol to alleviate the unnessecary draw that will ultimately negatively affect our region and the generations to follow.
I oppose this proposal in its current form, and I think the community deserves far more information before any approval is considered. Sounds like something that will benefit very few and affect very many.
Too much is still unknown. Krambu has no confirmed client, no confirmed power source, and the size of the facility depends entirely on who that client turns out to be. Most critically, their water-cooling system has never been deployed at scale. Do we want Bonner to be the testing site for this?
The job creation argument doesn't hold up to scrutiny. Krambu's own figures are that roughly three employees per 2 megawatts, which is only a handful of permanent positions for a facility with a stated vision of 100 megawatts. Would these be local employees or people who already work for Krambu?
With Krambu based in Idaho, and so few employees, it seems logical that any revenue generated will not actually stay in this community.
The power consumption concern is real. The Hyperblock cryptocurrency operation consumed a third of Missoula's daily power before going bankrupt and leaving. We should be skeptical of assurances that this will be categorically different.
And residents living across the street from this facility deserve honest answers about noise and health. Not guesses. A proven track-record. Communities near operating data centers frequently report health concerns tied to persistent background noise and vibration including infrasound. These are not hypothetical fears.
Communities that have made that same calculation with data centers have frequently ended up with the burdens and not the benefits.
A truly beneficial tenant would come in with specifics, a track record, and a community benefits agreement. Krambu has none of those things yet.
I urge the Land Use Board to require complete, specific answers to these questions before this project moves any further forward.
I vehemently oppose the data center project. There are countless examples of similar projects in other communities creating environmental hazards and inflating costs for residents while contributing nothing in return. Data centers have been shown to create hazardous noise pollution which will at best create a nuisance for nearby residents and students, and at worst pose unknown health risks. The proposed location is near the Blackfoot River, which is one of our greatest and most fragile community assets. A datacenter in this location poses risks to wildlife and the enjoyment of recreationists. Finally, datacenters are power-hungry and will strain our grid, driving up costs for Missoula county residents. The supposed economic benefits this project will bring will be negligible because AI datacenters simply do not create a significant number of new job opportunities. Don't let this AI company profit at our expense!
AI data centers provide no benefit to the community. Just say no.
I strongly oppose the approval of this data center project. It is a strain on resources and does not bring in any significant benefits to the local community. The long term effects of these centers on natural resources, wildlife, and public health are under researched and potentially pose significant harm. The potential and known risks wildly outweigh any posed benefit. Keep data centers out of Bonner.
I find it pretty incredulous that this company is taking QA's and wants public buy in when they can't even offer specifics. Is Krambu/this AI company aware that they will need to acquire water rights to use any water from a nearby source? How do we know they have done their full due diligence to understand the true feasibility of this center? I seriously doubt it and frankly it seems like they know it is not feasible in these ways and don't want to confirm. Until they can provide quantitative calculations for prospective water use and other factors, there is simply no way to support this.
The existing tenant gave notice they are moving out. The mill manager said that he has contacted numerous companies and industries looking for a replacement manufacturer. The wood products industry is dead. Our local timber is not suitable for dimensional lumber. The paper industry is way down and not seeking chips (beetle kill). Manufacturers want to locate in areas of much higher population, in areas that are close to customers transportation costs are significant. Montana is not close to anywhere. Wages in Montana are not enough to meet the local housing costs and the cost of living. This current date center interest is the only interest in this 240,000 sq. ft. space. Jeannie Dixon said that this use fits the zoning. The Tenant prospect answered the questions about water usage and stated that they use a closed loop system. In addition, the mill does not have a discharge permit. No wastewater would be discharged into the Blackfoot. E waste will be disposed of subject to Missoula County regulation. The electricity used will be replaced per code as well. The tenant will be hiring many local businesses and citizens to construct the data center. New skilled long-term jobs will be created as well. The cost to build a data center is significant and will be subject to property tax and business equipment tax to the benefit of Missoula County. A vacant building does not offer any benefit and would negatively impact the mill site and the other tenants there. This is an opportunity that should be positively considered.
The existing Tenant gave notice, they are moving out. The mill manager stated that he reached put to many industries, but has not received any interest in this space except for this data center. The problem for manufacturing is that , we do not have high enough wage levels to meet the cost of housing and the cost of living. A vacant 240,000 sq ft does not do the community any good. That space has to be leased in order for the mill site to be viable. The data center company answered questions about water (a closed loop system, no discharge), noise (below Missoula County standards), e waste, etc. The county said that the property is zoned for a data center. They will replace the energy they use. Missoula county stands to recieve a substantial amount in property tax and business equpment tax, which will help the community. I think we should support this business.
While this may seem like a solution for issues in our community, this is at best a short term band-aid and will do nothing to address the root of those problems. The long term effects of this data center will be disastrous, other communities are already seeing the negative impacts on the environment and the health and wellbeing of the community and I cannot understand why we would choose to put one in our home knowing that.
I disagree with this project and think there is much more meaningful way to create jobs for our community!
Do not build your environmental hacksaw in our town. Your useless product does nothing but ruin lives. Do not destroy our water and wildlife for money you do not need. You will make living in Bonner unbearable while destroying a beautiful environment.
Stay away from Montana. We value our wildlife and being able to float the rivers and lakes. We do not want you here.
A datacenter this close to a residential neighborhood is absolutely unacceptable. There are serious health risks to our community members. A datacenter also won’t bring in more than a handful of jobs as the expense of raising our infrastructure costs. We don’t want it!
As a Bonner resident, and Mama, I do not want this across the street from my house. Sound waves we cannot hear still have an effect on the body. If it's not supposed to be in a residential area why would they put it directly across the street from a historical residential neighborhood? It just doesn't make sense. Keep it somewhere that people dont live and wont be effected.
This is absolutely unacceptable. Datacenters cannot be located this close to residential neighborhoods. The high amount of noise pollution will cause the citizens in the surrounding areas to suffer from chronic illness. It will additionally negatively impact our local wildlife. This is not ok. You must not allow this to happen.