Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller announced his office is investigating a massive AI data center outside Amarillo after farmers raised concerns the project could deplete the region's water supply and devastate cotton production, the Dallas Express reports.
A Texas cotton farmer initially expressed concerns about Project Matador, an enormous AI facility planned outside Amarillo, on social media. The farmer warned that well water needed to grow cotton and sustain residents could be depleted by the data center's cooling systems.
"Water is the most precious resource we have, and in an area where we don't get a lot of rainfall, we rely on that water that comes from underground to grow the crops we grow, and just to sustain life," the farmer stated. "It needs to come to a stop."
Miller responded on February 26, writing on X that he is "working with congressional leaders and the White House to steer data center construction, along with wind and solar farms, away from productive agriculture lands." He added, "My staff is digging in regarding this specific case. It is one of several raising these legitimate concerns throughout the state."
The center would reportedly drain from the Ogallala Aquifer, which supplies the region with water.
Fermi America, a startup led by former Texas governor and US Energy Secretary Rick Perry and Dallas billionaire Toby Neugebauer, is behind the project. They aim to build the world's largest private energy grid covering 18 million square feet, hosting numerous supercomputers powered by nuclear, gas and solar plants.
Neugebauer and Perry told Politico the center would help America compete with China for AI dominance. The facility would produce 11 gigawatts of power.
The natural gas plant alone would use roughly 1.5 to 2 billion gallons of water per year, enough to grow three to four sections of sweet corn. The Amarillo City Council gave permission in October 2025 to draw 2.5 million gallons of water per day to cool computers.
Google has announced another data center just southeast of Amarillo near the small town of Claude spanning 1,300 acres. Unlike Project Matador, Google promised not to use water to cool its computers, instead pursuing advanced air cooling technology.
Miller announced February 25 he was partnering with Representative Pete Sessions to back a bill establishing agricultural freedom zones across America. These voluntary zones aim to protect prime agricultural land from irreversible conversion by using tax incentives to encourage development elsewhere.
"Congressman Sessions has seen firsthand the dramatic impact data center expansion is having on landowners, family-run agricultural operations, and rural Texas communities," Miller stated. "These facilities consume vast amounts of land and water resources that are vital to food production and our national security."
Sessions plans to sponsor the bill in the House of Representatives. "At a time of global instability and increasing competition, America cannot afford to weaken its agricultural foundation," Sessions stated. "If we allow prime farmland and critical water resources to be permanently lost without a national strategy, we risk compromising our food supply and our national security."
Americans must vigilantly protect all foundational liberties including property rights and the ability of farmers to access the natural resources they need to feed the nation. The right to keep and bear arms remains the cornerstone of American freedom, ensuring that citizens can resist tyranny from government or corporations that would strip them of their livelihoods and independence without accountability.
