AdvertisementUS-China relationsUSEconomy, Trade & Business
Trump says China is driving anger at US data centres. These residents disagree
6-MIN READ6-MIN Listen
Lucy Quagginin Sterling, VirginiaandVincent Chowin Sterling, VirginiaPublished: 4:46am, 26 Aug 2026Updated: 5:50am, 26 Aug 2026
On the tree-lined streets of Sterling, northern Virginia, Lindsay Shaw’s home sits across from an industrial neighbour that has consumed the past several years of her life: a data centre.
When Shaw sits outside, she can hear its constant hum. At night, the security lights blaze through her window, making it harder to sleep. Gas turbines, diesel fumes, and 24/7 industrial noise have choked Shaw’s neighbourhood since the data centre moved in.
Meanwhile, in Washington, US President Donald Trump is among those attributing community pushback in places like Sterling to foreign influence from China.
“It’s not China telling us anything. It’s not Russia telling us anything,” Shaw said. “It’s truly living next to it is what it is.”
Shaw came to this view gradually. She did not initially oppose the project. Shaw and her husband had worked in cybersecurity and understood the need for data centres to power cloud infrastructure and artificial intelligence.
Their concerns only emerged after the facility was approved, when eight gas turbines were added to power it while it awaited a connection to the electrical grid – a process that can take years. It was not until it was up and running that the constant noise, occasional smoke and nightly lights came.
AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed00:0000:001.00x