Illegal Pollution from Data Center Power Plants Shouldn’t Harm Our Communities. We’re Suing xAI.

Gas turbines — like the ones used at xAI’s Southaven power plant — pump out smog-forming pollution, fine particulate matter, and hazardous chemicals. These pollutants are tied to increases in asthma, respiratory diseases, heart problems, and certain cancers.

Clients

NAACP NAACP - Mississippi State Conference

Regional Office / Program

Gulf Regional Office Washington, D.C. Office

Case Overview

Elon Musk’s company, xAI, built an illegal power plant in Mississippi to power its AI data center — with no air permits, lax oversight, and little concern for families living nearby.

We sued.

Represented by Earthjustice and Southern Environmental Law Center, the NAACP and the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP sued xAI and its subsidiary, MZX Tech, for the tech companies’ unlawful operation of 27 unpermitted methane gas turbines in Southaven, Mississippi, to power its Colossus 2 data center in South Memphis.

Thermal drone footage shows unpermitted turbines operating at xAI’s gas plant in Southaven, Miss., nearly two weeks after the EPA ruled such turbines require permits before they can run. (Evan Simon / Floodlight)

The lawsuit explains that xAI is illegally operating 27 gas turbines without an air permit in Southaven, Mississippi, effectively building a power plant for its Colossus 2 data center, which powers the company’s chatbot, Grok.

xAI’s failure to get a permit for its power plant — which is located near homes, schools, and churches — is a clear violation of the Clean Air Act, which requires major sources of pollution to obtain air permits before being constructed or operated.

xAI’s power plant in Southaven has the potential to emit more than 1,700 tons of nitrogen oxides (NO_x) each year. The illegal turbines also have the potential to release up to 180 tons of fine particulate matter, 500 tons of carbon monoxide, and 19 tons of formaldehyde — a toxic, cancer-causing chemical — each year.

xAI’s illegal power plant in Mississippi is located half a mile from homes and just a mile from an elementary school, causing serious concern for community health. Neighbors have expressed significant concerns about the unpermitted power plant’s impact on their air, their health, and their quality of life.

The lawsuit was filed in federal district court for the Northern District of Mississippi. Among other things, the NAACP is asking the court to:

Declare that xAI has violated the Clean Air Act
Force xAI to stop operating unpermitted turbines at its Southaven facility
Order xAI to install the best available control technology on the power plant
Assess financial penalties to xAI for every day it violated federal law

A huge, white-colored building is in a large clearing, surrounded by dense forest. Rows of dozens of large, rectangular industrial machinery operate outside of the building. A truck with a bright red cab drives past the building and machinery. Two tall, yellow construction cranes are visible behind the building.

The xAI data center, Colossus II, in Memphis, Tennessee, just north of Southaven, Mississippi. (Brad Zweerink / Earthjustice)

Case Updates

A man in a light gray suit and blue tie looks directly into the camera with his hands clasped.

April 14, 2026 Article

A Community Takes a Data Center Colossus to Court

The NAACP and Earthjustice are suing Elon Musk’s company xAI over air pollution from an unpermitted power plant in Southaven, Mississippi.

April 14, 2026 document

Complaint: NAACP Sues xAI for Clean Air Act Violations

SELC and Earthjustice are representing the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP and the national NAACP in a lawsuit against xAI and its subsidiary, MZX Tech, for the tech companies’ unlawful operation of dozens of unpermitted methane gas turbines to power its Colossus 2 data center in South Memphis.