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Data center resource center

RES turns environmental risk into a competitive advantage for data center portfolios..

DATA CENTER DEVELOPMENT RESOURCE CENTER

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Resources for sustainability in data center development. Strategic levers for gaining community trust, accelerating timelines, and reducing cost.

FEATURED WHITE PAPER 

Ecological Strategies for Sustainable Data Center Development

As data centers grow, so do their community and environmental impacts. This white paper reveals how Nature-based Solutions (NbS) can help developers cut water and energy use, streamline permitting, and build community trust.

You’ll learn how to:

  • • Avoid delays with environmental site development
  • • Offset your data center water use and boost watershed health with volumetric water benefits
  • • Lower energy costs using nature-based strategies
  • • Be a trusted community leader with sustainable data center development

Download this white paper and turn your costly community and ecological challenges into strategic competitive advantages.

 

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Every data center project faces risk and resistance.

Turn these challenges into opportunities, using scalable, Nature-based Solutions proven to reduce community resistance, accelerate timelines, and unlock long-term savings and value. 

 

The data center dilemma

Click to watch video

PERMITTING & BUDGET RISK

Every delay costs.

Every cost compounds.

 

Permitting holdups can derail timelines and inflate budgets fast. The result? Lost site advantage and multi-million-dollar overruns.

 

Learn how to minimize risk →

PUBLIC OPPOSITION & PERMIT APPROVALS

Communities can make or break your project.

 

Projects without local trust face delays, protests, or rejections. Ecological uplift and visible community benefit are no longer optional.

 

Learn more about shared benefits →

COOLING, STORMWATER & RESILIENCE

Storms stress infrastructure.

 

Flooding, heatwaves, and runoff aren’t future problems; they’re now. Sites must be designed for long-term performance, not just short-term approvals.

 

Learn more about natural sustainability  →

COST SAVINGS

Eco-positive designs should return value.

 
Nature-based solutions can’t just “check the box.” They need to show real impact, with clear, measurable benefits that support both the project and the bottom line.

 

Learn more about environmental value →

CORPORATE WATER STEWARDSHIP

Sustainability is required.

 

From biodiversity to carbon footprints, today’s buyers, investors, and agencies expect projects to prove their ecological value, not just promise it. Are you doing enough?

 

Learn how to exceed your goals → 

PERMITTING AND PROJECT APPROVAL CALCULATOR
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Ecological solutions for data centers pays off

No credits?

See how much time and money can be saved with custom mitigation for your project.

How much time and money could you save?

See how a custom project approach can speed approvals and save time and money.

*Assumes 25% time savings from an ecological PRM approach. Cost impact calculated based on 30-day months.

HEAR FROM OUR EXPERT

Westbrook_Charlie
CHARLIE WESTBROOK, RES DATA CENTER SOLUTIONS MANAGER

 

Turn environmental risk into your data center competitive advantage

In an era of growing scrutiny over environmental impacts, data centers face a unique opportunity: transform risk into resilience, and delays into market differentiation. Watch this series of videos to learn about the proven environmental strategies developers are using to accelerate timelines, unlock sites, and build local trust.

STAKEHOLDER TOOLS
Downloadable PDFs that show the justifiable difference between traditional landscaping and ecological development.
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For Developers & Owners

DOWNLOAD

RES_Data_Center_Sustainability
 
For Sustainability & ESG

DOWNLOAD

RES_Data_Center_CFO
 
For CFOs & Capital Planners

DOWNLOAD

RES_Data_Center_Comm Affairs
 
For Community & Government Relations

DOWNLOAD

RES_Data_Center_Engineering F
 
For Engineering & Site Infrastructure

DOWNLOAD

RES_Data_Center_Construction F
 
For Construction & Project Delivery

DOWNLOAD

Robinson Fork Mitigation Bank

Environmental Mitigation

Offset with intention. Build faster with fewer tradeoffs.

 

  • Permit smarter, not slower: RES restores equivalent natural habitats to fully compensate for site impacts—streamlining approvals and avoiding costly project delays.

  • Scalable and repeatable: Our mitigation solutions are tailored to the land, built to scale across markets, and backed by a national portfolio

 

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Volumetric Water Benefits

Make water stewardship measurable and marketable.


  • Quantify what matters: VWB credits translate ecological restoration into measurable water replenishment, recharge, and quality gains.

  • Compliance made easier: Boost stormwater resilience and simplify permitting with data-backed environmental benefits, tailored to your service area.

 

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Ecological Site Development

Nature-based design isn’t just good for optics—it’s essential infrastructure.

 

  • Smart landscapes, smarter returns: Native vegetation, green roofs, and natural water systems manage runoff, improve aesthetics, and reduce cooling loads.

  • Resilient from the ground up: Reduce heat island effects and irrigation needs while delivering long-term operating cost savings and biodiversity uplift.

CASE STUDIES

Mitigation supports projects and builds local confidence

Volvo’s $5B facility nearly left South Carolina due to permitting risk. RES delivered a fast-tracked mitigation plan that kept the project on schedule and anchored in-state. See how early environmental planning helps projects like data centers meet critical timelines, while reinforcing trust with regulators and local stakeholders.

 

DOWNLOAD CASE STUDY

 

 

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Teddy Roosevelt Library_RC

 

NORTH DAKOTA

Teddy Roosevelt Presidential Library

 

Challenge: A high-profile site faced potential community opposition, environmental scrutiny, and the need for long-term operational resilience.

 

Solution: Led ecological site design, harvested and propagated 170+ native species, installed green roofs and native soils, and implemented nature-based systems to meet ambitious sustainability targets.

Outcome: The project is on track to deliver a resilient, zero-waste landscape that unifies architecture and ecology, setting a new benchmark for sustainable cultural development.

 

 

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priairie potholes prior to RES restoration
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IOWA

Prairie Potholes

 
Challenge: Once a thriving native prairie and wetland, this large Des Moines area site was drained for agriculture, resulting in the loss of its natural water management and diverse habitats.
 
Solution: Drain tile will be removed, hydrology will be restored with water control structures, and native prairie and wetland vegetation will be re-established. A long-term monitoring plan will guide success.

 

Outcome: Millions of gallons per year in groundwater recharge, improved water quality, and a restored landscape that supports corporate water stewardship and sustainability goals.

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LOUISIANA

Bayou Pierre

 

Challenge: Water quality impairments and permitting risks near a planned data center site.

 

Solution: Restored 318 acres of wetlands to filter runoff and reduce pollutants.

Outcome: Improved 650M gallons of water annually, advancing water positivity and reducing development risk.

 

OUR SOLUTIONS

What are Nature-based site strategies?

RES transforms environmental challenges into competitive advantages for data center development. From pollinator habitats to stormwater solutions and species mitigation, RES delivers smart, site-ready strategies that streamline permitting, reduce risk, and ensure long-term sustainability. Explore our nature-as-infrastructure approach designed to meet regulatory needs while building community and ecological value.

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Every data center site is different, but the formula for making nature work for you is the same. It starts with understanding the ecosystem and then designing for long-term, measurable ecological performance. Working across a range of landscapes, from impaired streams and floodplains to prairies, wetlands, and habitat corridors, you can restore natural function while staying on schedule and in compliance.

 

The result is more than mitigation. It’s a site that manages water, builds resilience, supports biodiversity, and earns community trust—naturally sustaining itself, and your investment.

 

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Ready to unlock your site's full potential?

 

Early engagement can make or break your timeline and budget. Our team helps you evaluate land strategy before the first permit is filed,  boosting value at the site selection stage, identifying mitigation and VWB opportunities, and aligning infrastructure with ecological assets that benefit you and the community.

 

I WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT DATA CENTER SUSTAINABILITY

 

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