Dear Mayor Lee Harris and Deputy Health Director Alexander,

I humbly ask that you use your power to request that the Air Pollution Control Board reconsider their decision to permit xAI to operate 15 methane turbines to power their Colossus data center in Southwest Memphis community members’ backyard. 

Local families are already burdened by severe public health disparities. A community that has been labeled the “path of least resistance” and designated a sacrifice zone by redlining reinforced by zoning laws is not giving up on breathing clean healthy air. Let us be intentional in our next steps, and unwavering in our demands for a healthy environment for everyone.

The combustion of methane gas emits dangerous pollutants, including nitrogen oxide (NOx) and formaldehyde — both regulated under the Clean Air Act. Based on estimates from the Southern Environmental Law Center, xAI could emit over 100–300 tons of NOx annually, worsening air quality and increasing respiratory emergencies in a region already facing environmental injustice. Southwest Memphis has a cancer rate four times the national average, and Shelby County has some of the highest rates of childhood asthma emergencies in the state.

There is an alarming lack of transparency about emissions data from xAI’s operations. Real-time air monitoring and assessment of the cumulative impacts of all industrial sources in the area are a necessity.

Clean air is not a privilege — it is a right. Memphis communities deserve protection, not pollution.