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Data centers in Oregon: 24 projects mapped
Oregon's data centers are concentrated in two places: Hillsboro, west of Portland, and Morrow and Umatilla counties around Boardman and Hermiston, where Amazon runs or is building most of them. Amazon bought more than 1,000 acres near Boardman this year for what it calls its Exascale Project, which a local organizer says would use a gigawatt of electricity. Hillsboro has a 120-day moratorium on new data center approvals, passed unanimously in July and set to end November 23.
In Morrow County the fight is over drinking water. In March Amazon agreed to pay $20.5 million, without admitting fault, to settle a lawsuit by residents whose wells are contaminated with nitrate; the Port of Morrow spreads wastewater from food processors and data centers on farm fields. The Oregon Health Authority has found at least 634 wells in the area with unsafe nitrate levels. The residents are still suing the port and other defendants and are seeking class-action status.
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In Washington County, candidates who campaigned against data centers won Democratic primaries in May, and teachers and conservation groups are suing the county and Hillsboro over a string of data center tax breaks. In Salem, Gov. Tina Kotek canceled a state land sale to Verrus in July, though its 75-acre campus is still under city review. At The Dalles, where Google runs data centers, OPB found Google's water use grew from 104 million gallons in 2012 to 434 million in 2024.
Since July, Portland General Electric's data center customers pay 29% more under a 2025 state law, while household rates fell 1.3%. Four Democratic lawmakers plan to propose a three-year moratorium on new large data centers when the Legislature meets in January.
9 counties with tracked projects
Only places with at least one project have a page.
Where this comes from
The reporting above was written from these. Open one and check it yourself.
Where people here have won
Projects stopped by a vote, pulled by their developer, or blocked in court.
| Place | What happened | Date | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SalemVerrus | Withdrawn by the developer Governor ordered the state land sale withdrawn. | Jul 30, 2026 | 32-75 acres | Story off site ↗ |
| La PineBoxminer (bitcoin mining) | Denied by a vote City Council voted unanimously against selling the land after hours of public opposition. | May 27, 2026 | 20 MW, 19.5 acres | |
| Cascade Locks | Withdrawn by the developer The port and developer ended the data center deal after community opposition. | Jul 2023 | Not reported |
Moratoriums and bans in effect
Places in Oregon that have paused or banned new data centers.
| Place | Type | Started | Ends | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SalemTown or city | Moratorium | Sep 21, 2026 | Jan 19, 2027 | Record off site ↗ |
| HillsboroTown or city | Moratorium | Jul 27, 2026 | Nov 24, 2026 | Record off site ↗ |
Every project above is drawn from public records, filings and local reporting. Each row links to what it is based on. Statuses change, so check the source date before you rely on one. Found something wrong? Write to [email protected] and it gets fixed.