The thousand-dollar line

By: Tommy Turner

Outlets: Virginia Mercury

Published: August 25, 2026

Words: 935

Last Updated: 1 month, 3 weeks ago

Body Text Preview

I read every noise rule in Virginia that could reach a data center. There are 73 of them across 43 jurisdictions, and the one that stopped me was not a decibel limit. It was a budget line.

It is in a Loudoun County staff report from September 2016. The county was rewriting its noise standards and someone had asked what it would cost to regulate tonal noise, meaning the narrow-band hum that people describe …

Create a free account to access this story and more

Join Plucky Wire to access full stories, collaborate with newsrooms, and discover content from networks around the world.

About

FAQ

Email Us