New Jersey Fines a Data Center $1.1 Million Over Unpermitted Gas Generators

New Jersey ordered the operator of one of the East Coast's largest planned data centers to pay a $1.1 million fine for secretly installing and operating gas generators in violation of the state's Air Pollution Control Act, Ars Technica reports. The state announced the penalty this week, according to the outlet's account of the case. A permit is required in New Jersey for generators with a capacity of 37 kilowatts or higher. These units ran at 1,982 kilowatts — roughly fifty times the capacity at which the requirement kicks in, which turns a permitting dispute into something closer to a decision to operate outside the rules and see whether anyone notices. The fine is the answer to that question.