Groups ask DEQ to reject application for public water supply to serve data center project

Approving a water supply well to serve the Quantica Big Sky Campus would “hide the true scope” of a data center project that could be the largest in Montana history, a group of watchdog and conservation organizations allege in a letter to a state agency.

But a Department of Environmental Quality spokesperson said the agency is still reviewing public comment about the well application — such as the one from the groups — and additional environmental review could be warranted.

Quantica Big Sky Campus is a 5,100-acre data center development located 30 miles north of Billings, according to a May news release from Quantica Infrastructure.

Quantica said the site, near Broadview, is designed to support “multiple data center buildings,” with the first expected to be operational in 2029.

Big Sky Digital Infrastructure, of Quantica, and consultant Tetra Tech submitted an application to the Department of Environmental Quality for testing a public water supply well.

The DEQ describes the project as a proposed well that would provide water during construction and, later, drinking water for the campus.

In a news release and application, Quantica said the campus is expected to use as much as 150,000 gallons of water per day to support workforce needs and construction activities during the construction phase, and water use would “decline significantly” to 20,000 gallons a day during operations.

The DEQ describes the site construction footprint for the well as roughly 100 feet by 100 feet and said the maximum footprint needed to house “the necessary water treatment” would be “similar to a small shed.”

The DEQ also said the well may be used to “provide cooling water” to the data center’s cooling system.

In an initial decision, the DEQ found the project qualified for a “categorical exclusion,” or an exemption from closer environmental scrutiny in the Montana Environmental Policy Act. The groups ask the DEQ to withdraw that decision.

In an extensive letter, the 13 organizations represented by Earthjustice and Western Environmental Law Center said the application is asking the DEQ to review the project in “piecemeal fashion,” and in doing so, disregarding the effects of the “massive” undertaking.

The groups also allege the DEQ’s ambiguous permitting process interferes with the constitutionally protected right to know and right to participate.

“DEQ and Quantica must release additional information about the proposed data center and any associated electricity generation assets — including a reported 1,785-megawatt gas plant — to ensure that the public can meaningfully participate in a public comment process,” the groups said.

They call on the DEQ to reject the application as flawed and incomplete, deny Quantica’s request to expedite the application, and conduct a full environmental impact statement, or complete review, including greenhouse gas emissions.

“Documents submitted to DEQ prove that the well exists solely to facilitate a much larger undertaking, including a hyperscale data center,” said a letter from the groups. “Quantica asks DEQ to hide the true scope of this project from the public by seeking review of the application in isolation.”

They said DEQ records show Quantica is pursuing permits for 585 megawatts of gas-fired engines and 1,200 megawatts of gas-fired turbines, which “exceeds the combined capacity of every gas plant now operating in Montana.”

They also said much more details are needed from Quantica or the DEQ about the proposed cooling system, such as how much water needs to be added periodically, any chemicals added, and what happens when the system is flushed.

The organizations submitting the letter are the following: Butte Watchdogs for Social and Environmental Justice, Citizens for Clean Energy, Families for a Livable Climate, Honor the Earth, Montana Conservation Voters, Montana Environmental Information Center, Montana Health and Climate, Montana Public Interest Research Group, Northern Plains Resource Council, Park County Environmental Council, Sierra Club Montana Chapter, Upper Missouri Waterkeeper and 350 Montana.

On Oct. 21, DEQ announced it had extended the public comment period for the water supply well through Nov. 6. Monday, a spokesperson for the DEQ said the agency will begin reviewing comments, and an environmental impact statement is possible.

“DEQ will consider the public comments and supporting information and determine whether additional environmental review is warranted,” said DEQ spokesperson Madison McGeffers.

A spokesperson for Quantica did not comment Monday on the letter from the groups, but the company earlier said it is focused on responsible development that “pays its own way for power, creates good jobs and invests in local communities.”

In a statement in August, Big Sky Digital Infrastructure general counsel Damon Obie said he grew up on a ranch in Montana and doesn’t take water for granted.

“We designed the Big Sky Campus to use minimal water and to source it deep underground, away from the wells our neighbors rely on,” Obie said. “Protecting Montana’s water is a responsibility we take seriously.”

In the letter, the groups present a lengthy review of the project and call for more information about it.

They allege the DEQ is providing contradictory information about the project — for example, describing just “one public water supply well” in one document that would exempt the project from a full environmental review while not acknowledging a second well referenced in the application.

“Granting Quantica’s application would authorize the first water-supply infrastructure for what may become one of the largest industrial developments in Montana’s history,” the groups said.

McGeffers said the DEQ has asked Quantica’s consultant to clarify “the use of the second well location,” and DEQ will need to reconcile the information in the application with other materials.

“Based on Quantica’s response DEQ will evaluate if an additional public comment period is appropriate,” McGeffers said in an email.