In May 2026, social media users claimed that environmental activist Erin Brockovich had started tracking AI data centers across the U.S. to map the complaints Americans have about the facilities.
Brockovich is known for her consumer advocacy and environmental activism, and her work was chronicled in the 2000 film "Erin Brockovich" where she was played by Julia Roberts.
Per a Facebook post (archived), her online interactive map saw more than 1,800 reports submitted from 47 states within a week of going live. The post read:
Erin Brockovich has launched a new interactive map and website tracking data centers across the United States — and Americans are flooding it with complaints.
Within the first week alone, the platform received 1,690 resident complaints, with more than 1,800 reports submitted from 47 states soon after going live.
People are raising concerns about:
• Massive water consumption putting pressure on local resources
• Utility costs increasing for surrounding neighborhoods
• Loud 24/7 noise from cooling systems and backup generators
• Potential pollution tied to e-waste and PFAS chemicals
This is the same Erin Brockovich who helped secure a historic $333 million settlement against PG&E after contaminated drinking water devastated a California community in the 1990s.
The new map tracks existing, proposed, and under-construction AI data centers, while allowing residents to upload photos, locations, and firsthand reports.
As AI infrastructure rapidly expands nationwide, many communities are beginning to question the environmental and financial price that comes with it.
(Facebook user "Terrence K Williams")
In short, Brockovich has launched an online AI data center tracking portal. The initiative began in late April 2026 when she announced it on her verified Facebook account and Substack, "The Brockovich Report." The database has been receiving thousands of reports since it went live. As such, we rate this claim true.
We reached out to Brockovich to learn more about her methodology and will update this post accordingly if we receive a response.
On April 28, Brockovich published a Substack blog post (archived) saying the AI Data Center Reporting Map launched the day before on brockovichdatacenter.com (archived). Per the Substack announcement, the initiative aims to "make sure that the infrastructure powering AI doesn't come at the expense of the people living around it." The website states:
The RACE to build AI infrastructures is unfolding town by town across America. In some places, data centers are welcomed. In others, they are delayed, contested or abandoned altogether. This MAP captures the real-world footprint of that race — revealing patterns of growth, conflict and uncertainty.
As an environmental activist, Brockovich raised numerous alarms about the growth of AI data centers, namely that they require enormous amounts of power, which means increasing pressure on the electricity grid and requiring more fossil fuels. She also noted that data centers require "staggering volumes of water," produce e-waste and create very few permanent local jobs while consuming considerable resources.
According to Brockovich's map, as of May 24, communities reported concerns about potential or functional data centers in 2,716 locations across the United States. It should be noted that the data map reports only 33 operational data centers, 44 under construction or announced and 27 more pending approval or in the pipeline, as of this writing.
(Brockovich AI Data Center Reporting)
A form on the website asks people to share their concerns about current or future data centers in their communities and to note pressing issues that arise as a result of one being built. The form also asks users to upload photographs from their region showing the effects of the facilities.
Over 1800 individual citizens from 47 states have now submitted their concerns regarding data centers in their backyards.
They just want transparency and safe water.
Keep going, keep showing up and keep reporting.
It has not been possible to independently confirm all the reported cases.
Snopes has previously reported on the significant environmental impact of AI data centers. We found that AI has driven significant increases in greenhouse gas emissions from major technology companies and data centers, representing 0.6% of total global greenhouse gas emissions since 2020.