In September 2026, an Imperial County Superior Court judge overturned the approval of a 950,000-square-foot, 330-megawatt data center near Niland, the largest proposed in California, because the county approved it "by right" without the environmental review CEQA requires. For the majority-Latino communities of the Imperial Valley, Coachella and Perris, the ruling is a guide to how the law works.
What CEQA Is
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires that, before approving a project, the agency study and publicly disclose its impacts: noise, air quality, water, traffic, energy. If the impacts are significant, it must prepare an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and consider alternatives and mitigation measures.
What Happened in Imperial
The county approved the Imperial Valley Computer Manufacturing LLC project as a "by-right" industrial use, with no EIR. The City of Imperial and the Sierra Club sued. The judge concluded the county abused its discretion by approving a lot merger before environmental review, vacated the approval and ordered full CEQA compliance. The developer said it would appeal.
The Moratorium Fight
In June 2026 the county approved a temporary moratorium; another judge enjoined it for lack of urgency findings; in October the county adopted a new emergency moratorium and created a 19-member advisory committee. The lesson: local moratoria are powerful tools but must be done correctly.
What Changes on January 1, 2027
SB 887, part of the seven-bill package signed September 21, 2026, bars data centers from using CEQA "categorical exemptions." That means most new projects will have to do a real environmental review with public participation. AB 1577 also requires property-line noise estimates for projects of 10 MW or more.
How to Participate in an EIR
When a draft EIR is published, there is a public comment period (usually 45 days). Any resident can submit written comments, in Spanish, about noise, air, water or health. The comments create the record a court later uses. Environmental organizations and CEQA attorneys can help draft them.
Where We Fit
CEQA lawsuits are usually brought by environmental organizations and specialized firms. Our role is to support Spanish-speaking residents: explain the process, connect them with those organizations, and evaluate whether they also have individual claims for nuisance, health harm or workplace injury. Free consultation.