Donna Collins, a lifelong resident of rural North Louisiana, lives just 20 miles from Meta’s massive $27 billion AI data center project in Richland Parish. Her family has lived on the land for five generations, and she describes the area as “a little piece of heaven”—quiet, rural, and deeply connected to the land. But that peace is now under threat as construction transforms the region into a hub for the infrastructure behind generative AI. The recent winter storm, dubbed the “icepocalypse” by locals, brought freezing temperatures, heavy ice accumulation, and widespread power outages across the region. Collins’s home, served by an electric cooperative, lost power for four days. Her Airbnb property, served by Entergy Louisiana, was also without electricity for several days. The storm highlighted the fragility of the local grid, which already struggles with reliability in remote areas. Meta’s data center is set to consume three times the annual electricity of the city of New Orleans. To meet that demand, Entergy Louisiana is building three new gas-fired power plants. While Meta has committed to covering the capital costs of these plants for 15 years, consumer advocates warn that the full financial and grid impact remains unclear. Logan Burke of the Alliance for Affordable Energy says the project could drive up gas and electricity prices for all residents. “In a world where those three new gas power plants are online, that would be further upward pressure on the cost of gas and therefore on the cost of both home heating and the cost of electricity on the larger market,” Burke said. He and the Union of Concerned Scientists have challenged Entergy’s grid stability analysis, arguing it fails to properly assess risks from large-scale disruptions, such as transmission line failures or power plant outages—events the region has already experienced. Despite Meta’s claim that its investment will save customers $650 million over 15 years by reducing grid upgrade and storm-related charges, advocates remain skeptical. They point out that the company’s commitment doesn’t cover all infrastructure costs, such as upgrades to transmission lines, and that increased demand could still strain the system during future emergencies. Paul Arbaje, an energy analyst at the Union of Concerned Scientists, stressed that communities like Richland Parish are already vulnerable. “People in North Louisiana are already facing a lot of outages, and there’s this new project that is being rushed through the process, not adequately studied in terms of impact on the grid,” he said. “It could potentially cause even more disruptions and cause even more harm if we don’t take this seriously enough.” Beyond energy, residents like Collins are concerned about rising property values, taxes, and rents. While she supports progress, she worries about the long-term cost to her community. She hopes Meta follows through on promises to support local hiring and vocational training, especially as farming becomes harder to sustain. For now, the project moves forward with little pause. But as the region recovers from the ice storm, questions remain: Who will pay for the grid’s resilience? How will future crises be managed? And at what cost to the people who have called this place home for generations?