# The Single Largest Pollution Source In The USA Going To Be An Amazon AI Data Center > Source: > Published: 2026-08-12 02:12:13+00:00 # The Single Largest Pollution Source In The USA Going To Be An Amazon AI Data Center *Support CleanTechnica's work through*[a Substack subscription](https://cleantechnica.substack.com/subscribe),[on Patreon](https://www.patreon.com/cleantechnica), or[on Stripe](https://cleantechnica.fundjournalism.org/contribute/). Help us produce all of the[high-quality, original content we publish week after week](https://cleantechnica.com/2026/07/14/10/)despite the challenges of content-scraping AI, antisocial media, inflation, and other hurdles.Well, so much for climate pledges and grand goals to cut carbon emissions. It’s more important for ginormous tech companies and the tech-nerd billionaires who own them to keep up with the Joneses in the midst of the modern “AI era,” no matter the consequences. Amazon, one of the cofounders of [The Climate Pledge](https://www.theclimatepledge.com/), thinks it’s more important to build a truly unmatched polluter in order to power all the AI the company can throw together. Amazon is reportedly building a 7.65-gigawatt (GW) gas-burning power plant in Pecos County, Texas, in order to power a gigantic data center. The power plant’s 35 gas turbines are expected to emit 33 million tons of CO2 a year. No other single source of pollution in the country would compare. (Unless Elon Musk plans to shatter the record at [Tesla and SpaceX’s TERAFAB project](https://cleantechnica.com/2026/08/10/10-billion-tesla-solar-factory-in-texas-and-20-25-billion-terafab-project-in-midst-of-ai-bubble/).) Amazon spokesperson Margaret Callahan’s [response](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/08/climate/amazon-data-center-texas-pollution.html): “[the] world looks different now than when we co-founded The Climate Pledge.” Hmm, yeah? Is it cooling? *Nope, it’s heating up.* Are countries and companies rapidly retiring old fossil fuel power plants? Nope. What has changed is that there is now unfathomable, extreme demand for AI data centers — at least as long as this AI is predominantly free. “Growth and sustainability don’t have to be in opposition — in fact, our results show they reinforce each other,” Callahan added. *Great!* Ah, wait … so than why is Amazon building the largest single polluter in the United States? Well, who needs a stable, human-friendly climate anyway? *Sign up for* [CleanTechnica's Weekly Substack for Zach and Scott's in-depth analyses and high level summaries](https://cleantechnica.substack.com/subscribe), sign up for[our daily newsletter](https://mailchi.mp/cleantechnica/daily-newsletter), and[follow us on Google News](https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqLQgKIidDQklTRndnTWFoTUtFV05zWldGdWRHVmphRzVwWTJFdVkyOXRLQUFQAQ)!*Have a tip for CleanTechnica? Want to advertise? Want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast?* [Contact us here](https://cleantechnica.com/contact/).*Sign up for our daily newsletter for* [15 new cleantech stories a day](https://mailchi.mp/cleantechnica/daily-newsletter). Or sign up for[our weekly one on top stories of the week](https://mailchi.mp/cleantechnica/weekly-newsletter)if daily is too frequent. *CleanTechnica uses affiliate links. See our policy* [here](https://cleantechnica.com/cleantechnica-editorial-ethics/).[CleanTechnica's Comment Policy](https://cleantechnica.com/cleantechnica-comment-policy/)