A report from the Environmental Protection Network, covered by The Verge and Common Dreams, argues the pollution powering the AI data center buildout could impose up to $20.9 billion in annual public health costs under a rapid-development scenario, along with roughly 600,000 additional asthma cases and about 1,300 premature deaths a year. The group, made up of hundreds of former EPA staffers, documents at least 30 federal actions since January 2025 that it says increase pollution-related health risks or weaken protections, including rollbacks touching power-plant carbon rules, mercury and air toxics, coal wastewater and coal ash. EPN is asking the administration to adopt a Data Center Health Protection Pledge covering disclosure, air and water safeguards, and enforcement capacity.