In yet another new development in Elon Musk’s xAI’s toxic datacenter pollution lawsuit, the AI firm is now being sued for the second time, this time for illegal air pollution emissions from its giant data centers, the NAACP has filed a 40-page notice of intent to sue xAI for violating the Clean Air Act by installing unlicensed methane gas generators in Southaven, Mississippi, a predominantly black neighborhood. The lawsuit has been filed against xAI for air emissions associated with its supercomputing activities that power its chatbot Grok. According to the civil rights organization, over two dozen portable turbines have been installed at the company’s latest installation without environmental permits.

Expanding Data Empire Under Scrutiny

In 2024, xAI (a data-driven company) opened its largest data center, known as “Colossus,” located in Memphis, TN, with an area of approximately 13 football fields combined. Following the completion of Colossus, xAI opened Colossus 2, which is larger still, in Southaven, just across the Mississippi border within the Memphis metropolitan area.

Recently, construction of xAI’s third data center began in Southaven, raising further concern for local residents, as they claim both noise pollution and air pollution have risen due to construction on the new data center, and that they have started petitions to urge state agencies to regulate xAI for contributing further damage to their environment.

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Allegations of Clean Air Act Violations

The NAACP alleges that xAI has put up 27 portable methane gas generators at its Southaven site without permits, and the group says it has documented more than a dozen of those turbines operating since last fall. A recent investigation that used thermal imagery concluded that at least 18 of the 27 generators have been operational since November.

These turbines produce fine particulate fumes that contain harmful chemicals like formaldehyde and nitrogen oxides. The NAACP argued that nitrogen oxides from the 27 generators could be “staggering amounts,” making the site the biggest industrial source of the pollutant in the Memphis metropolitan area. Asthma, respiratory illness, and certain cancers are linked to exposure to such pollutants.

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Regulatory Dispute and Legal Stakes

Mississippi regulators qualify the turbines as portable and temporary, creating a permitting loophole, and a similar argument was initially applied to xAI’s facility in Memphis, Tennessee, before the company obtained its permits there. The Environmental Protection Agency still insists that permits for air pollution are required under the Clean Air Act for such sources of pollution.

As Elon Musk’s xAI’s toxic datacenter pollution lawsuit heats up, the battle highlights the growing friction between the fast expansion of AI infrastructure and the environmental justice issues that frontline communities face.

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