OpenAI Seeks Permit to Fill 72 Acres of Wetlands for Georgia Data Center

Oct 27, 2026
OpenAI applied for a federal permit to fill 72 acres of wetlands for its planned data center campus in Effingham County, Georgia.

OpenAI has applied for a federal permit to fill 72 acres of wetlands at its planned data center campus in Effingham County, Georgia, the Savannah Morning News reported. The application to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was made public on Oct. 5. If approved, it would let OpenAI build four large data center facilities and related infrastructure on the site.

Environmental groups and residents worry that paving over the wetlands will worsen flooding downstream. "That is a massive amount of impervious surface being added to an area that's bordered by two permanent creeks," said Jeff Beauvais of the conservation nonprofit One Hundred Miles.

OpenAI said it will build stormwater infrastructure to match the wetlands' natural drainage, and that its plan preserves 70% of the wetlands within the project area. Under the Clean Water Act, the permit can only be approved if the site is the least environmentally damaging practicable option.

We hope you enjoyed this article

Consider subscribing to one of our newsletters like Silicon Brief or Daily AI Brief.

Also, consider following us on social media:

AI Chips & Datacenters AI Brief AI Brief (X)
Free newsletter

Silicon Brief

Weekly coverage of AI hardware developments including chips, GPUs, cloud platforms, and data center technology.

Guide
AI interconnect and networking startups

AI interconnect and networking startups

29 private startups developing the chips, optical switches and memory fabrics that move data through AI infrastructure.

AI Token Webinar

Industry analysis

2025 Global Business Services Agenda: Gen AI Takes Center Stage

The Hackett Group

This industry analysis by The Hackett Group explores the transformative impact of generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) on global business services (GBS) in 2025. The study highlights the shift from exploration to acceleration of Gen AI initiatives, with 89% of executives advancing these projects to improve customer satisfaction, innovate products, and reduce costs. The report also discusses the challenges and strategies for successful Gen AI adoption, emphasizing the need for a technology-enabled operating model and the importance of reskilling the workforce.

Read more

You may also like

Free, six days a week

Daily AI Brief: the AI news that matters, in your inbox.