Red Banyan Releases Free Checklist to Help Developers Face Data Center Opposition

Backlash at record levels

Artificial intelligence is driving a historic build-out of data centers across the United States, and community opposition is growing alongside it. According to Data Center Watch, cited by Red Banyan, opposition blocked or delayed about $130 billion in data center projects in the first three months of 2026, roughly matching the total for all of 2025. The same source says the figure covers at least 75 U.S. projects in that quarter.

Active local opposition groups more than doubled in a single quarter, to more than 800 across 49 states, according to Data Center Watch. Reuters reported that opponents staged 142 protests in 42 states on July 18, 2026. A Pew Research Center survey found that 60 percent of Americans would be uncomfortable with a new data center in their area.

Why Red Banyan compares it to a cancellation campaign

The accompanying guide, titled "Data Center Backlash: Why It Behaves Like a Cancellation Campaign, and How Developers Should Respond," argues that opposition often forms before any project is filed. As an example, it cites Lochbuie, Colorado, which passed a moratorium even though, according to its mayor, no developer had ever approached the town. The guide also says the same talking points travel from community to community, and that each concession can become a reason to ask for more.

Red Banyan says the guide treats residents' concerns about electricity rates, water, noise and land use as legitimate. It focuses on how opposition spreads and how developers can respond with facts and credible local voices.

Evan Nierman, Founder and CEO of Red Banyan, said: "Opposition to data centers now moves at the speed of a national story." He added that the debate is being shaped "long before a developer files its first application."

What the checklist covers

The checklist turns the firm's five-phase playbook into 15 yes/no questions across four areas:

• Know the Ground: whether the team has mapped local and national groups likely to oppose the project, and what residents already believe about data centers.
• Build the Fact Base: whether the developer can explain in plain numbers who pays for new power and transmission, and state projected water use and cooling technology.
• Line Up Credible Voices: whether local validators are ready to speak from their own experience.
• Prepare for Pressure: whether the team can spot and correct misinformation within 24 hours, and whether spokespeople are trained to treat public hearings like TV interviews.

Users count their "yes" answers to score a project as Ready (13 to 15), Exposed (9 to 12) or At Risk (8 or fewer).

Availability and what it means

The checklist is a free PDF on the Red Banyan blog at redbanyan.com/blog/data-center-backlash-crisis-communications, with no sign-up required. The full guide also covers the data behind the backlash, community concerns developers must address, why traditional crisis PR tools can backfire in this environment, and a phase-by-phase playbook from pre-announcement through approval.

For developers, utilities, investors and public officials, the release reflects a view from the communications industry that preparation before a public announcement now matters as much as the project itself. Red Banyan's advice is to identify the facts on a project's side and communicate them early, clearly and persistently through trusted voices. The firm says it has worked with utility companies involved in data center projects and has also advised homeowners who opposed them.