MDE approves air quality permit for 99 backup generators at Amazon site

By MARWA BARAKAT

mbarakat@newspost.com

The Maryland Department of the Environment on Wednesday approved a highly contested air quality permit that authorizes a company to install 99 diesel-fired backup generators at a data center site near Adamstown.

Amazon Data Services applied for the permit in October 2024 to install the emergency backup generators at a planned data center site — named Bauxite I — at the Quantum Frederick campus.

Amazon could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.

Many Frederick County residents and other concerned parties opposed the permit through written comments and at a public meeting held at Carroll Manor Elementary School in December.

People who opposed the permit raised concerns about potential health and noise issues and highlighted its proximity to the elementary school.

Bauxite I, which is made up of four data center buildings, a water building and a security building, is a little more than a mile away from Carroll Manor Elementary School.

Bauxite I was developed by Rowan Digital Infrastructure and was turned over to Amazon after base construction completed late last year.

“Rowan continues to serve as a steward of the property and its core electrical infrastructure, maintaining an on-site team focused on facilities oversight, coordination, and long-term site integrity,” spokesperson Nathaniel Brown wrote in an email to The Frederick News-Post last week.

Rowan is also developing data center facilities Bauxite II and III.

Bauxite II is currently the data center closest to Carroll Manor and is approximately 1,900 feet north of the school. It is expected to be completed this year.

As MDE reviewed Amazon’s application, many people wondered if the agency was properly considering other air quality permit applications that will be submitted as the Quantum Frederick campus is built out.

Maryland Secretary of the Environment Serena McIlwain said the issued permit includes “strong science-based protections,” according to an MDE press release sent Wednesday.

The permit was issued “consistent with processes” developed by the agency for the last state-approved air quality permit for a similar project, which was issued in January 2025 to Aligned Data Centers for their site on the Quantum campus.

(See MDE A10)

The Maryland Department of the Environment approved an air quality permit that authorizes Amazon Data Services to install 99 emergency backup generators at a data center facility on the Quantum Frederick campus.

Staff photo by Ric Dugan

(MDE from A1) The agency will enforce Clean Air Act requirements and permit conditions with “rigor and accountability,” McIlwain said in the press release.

“We heard the concerns of residents, and are confident that this permit protects air quality and public health,” McIlwain said in the press release. “Maryland welcomes economic growth and the jobs that come with it, but growth does not come at the expense of our families.”

Amazon and the public can appeal the agency’s final decision.

Amazon submitted a permit application for an additional data center facility in Frederick, and the agency will schedule a public meeting, according to the press release.

Permit details

The 99 diesel-fired generators are prohibited from operating as the data center’s primary power source and can only be used for backup power during emergencies. They can also be used for testing and maintenance purposes.

There is no time limit on the use of the generators in an emergency situation, according to the permit.

In the event the campus loses primary utility power, 91 generators “would be expected to operate at one time once the entire campus is operational,” according to Amazon.

The generators can operate for up to 100 hours per calendar year for maintenance checks and readiness testing.

“Scheduled testing and maintenance activities typically take less than 5 hours per year per generator, with most of the total time consisting of short 6-minute bi-weekly readiness testing,” according to Amazon.

Testing and maintenance typically occurs between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Amazon said.

Amazon can petition for additional hours for testing, but “a petition is not required if the Permittee maintains records indicating that federal, State, or local standards require maintenance and testing of the emergency generator beyond 100 hours per calendar year,” the permit states.

The generators can operate for up to 50 hours per calendar year in non-emergency situations, which are counted in the 100 hours for testing.

The permit also limits Amazon to 25 tons of NOx (nitrogen oxides) emissions per rolling 12-month period on the premises.

MDE will conduct announced and unannounced inspections, review operations and require the facility to submit annual emissions certifications, according to the agency’s press release.

The data center facility must also maintain an oil spill prevention plan and obtain an oil permit before diesel fuel for the generators can be stored on site.

Public comments

Along with its final determination on the permit application, MDE released responses to the public comments it received.

In addition to concerned residents, representatives of groups like the Maryland Chapter of the Sierra Club and the Maryland Legislative Coalition’s Climate Justice Wing submitted comments urging the agency to reject the permit.

Josh Tulkin, director of the Maryland Sierra Club, wrote that MDE should conduct a “cumulative impact analysis” of the emissions from Amazon’s facility and other pending or permitted generators in the area.

In response to comments about the cumulative impact of generators, MDE said its focus in evaluating permit applications for air pollution sources is limited to air quality impacts associated with the equipment in the application.

“For additional applications for data centers in the same area, MDE will evaluate whether the additional project should be considered part of this original project using the guidelines specified under the Clean Air Act,” MDE wrote in its response. “If so, MDE would require the applicant to comply with major source air quality requirements for the total emissions.”

MDE also said the impact from Amazon’s site is not expected to impact “Frederick’s status with regard to air quality standards.”

The Engine Technology Forum, an organization based in Frederick that advocates for advanced engine technologies, wrote to MDE in support of the permit.

The organization said the permit’s conditions will ensure effective backup power for the facility while “minimizing the impact on the community.”

Staff photo by Ric Dugan