Zephyrhills City Council advances moratorium on data centers WRAP
A small Pasco County city has moved forward with a temporary pause on data center proposals .
WMNF’s Chris Young reports the unanimous decision came at a city council meeting in Zephyrills yesterday
Data center development has boomed with the rise of artificial intelligence, and faces criticism as they use massive amounts of water and electricity.
According to Consumer Reports, a data center can use up to 5 million gallons of water per day.
Florida is also currently experiencing a severe drought.
Laura Strange was the only speaker during public comment.
We need water. We can’t live without water. So, the amount, depending on the size of the data centers, it’s going to be probably unbelievable.
According to Spectrum Bay News 9, Zephyrhills hasn’t been approached for a data center, but other cities and local governments inspired the moratorium.
Among them are the city of Lakeland which is reviewing a similar proposal, and Nassau and Citrus County which recently passed moratoriums
Pasco County is also set to address a possible moratorium this week.
NASA names Artemis III crew for highly complex human space mission
NASAs Randy Bresnik is commanding the mission along with fellow astronauts Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas as mission specialists. European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano will serve as mission pilot.
Their mission will test the Orion spacecrafts ability to dock with two lunar landers designed by SpaceX and Blue Origin.
While the mission is staying in low-Earth orbit, the future of NASAs lunar plans depend on the success of Artemis Three.
Commander Randy Bresnik: Spaceflight is hard, and that's why the most important Artemis mission will always be the next Artemis mission.
Despite an explosion at its launch pad last month, Blue Origin said it will be ready to launch its lander for this mission next year. SpaceX continues to develop its landing vehicle, completing its 12th Starship test flight last month.
DeSantis wants teachers' unions gone. United Teachers of Dade says it is here to stay
At a bill signing last month, Governor Ron DeSantis said the new law will end teachers unions quote “once and for all” in the state of Florida.
The law requires at least 50 percent of union members to vote to be represented by a labor union in order for a union election to be valid.
Antonio White is the president of United Teachers of Dade; the teachers union for Miami-Dade County.
WHITE: There's not an election that I know of in this country where 50 percent of all eligible voters have to participate in order for that election to be valid. Normally, in this country, those who vote determine the outcome
In fact, governor races in 1998, 2006, and 2010 failed to reach 50 percent turnout.
United Teachers of Dade represents more than 23 thousand teachers, and White says the group is pushing to surpass that 50 percent turnout threshold in the all-by-mail election.
The right to be in a labor union is enshrined in the Florida Constitution.