Mississippi environmental regulators are seeking millions from the company behind the SpaceXAI data center operations in Southaven. Potential SpaceXAI MDEQ penalties total about $6.1 million, according to a quarterly report the company’s parent filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last week.
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) issued notices of violation in August to MZX Tech, SpaceXAI’s parent company, the DeSoto Times-Tribune and Daily Memphian reported.
What the SpaceXAI MDEQ penalties involve
According to the filing, the state alleges the company disturbed land at three Southaven sites without first obtaining state stormwater permits. Construction stormwater permits are meant to limit erosion and keep sediment-laden runoff out of nearby streams and drainage systems.
The sites named in the reports include:
The company’s Southaven data center, known as MACROHARDERR
Its power plant site
A nearby 51-acre site the company recently acquired in a land swap with the city of Southaven
MDEQ can seek civil penalties of up to $25,000 per day for violations. The roughly $6.1 million figure is the company’s preliminary estimate of its potential exposure, not a final penalty.
Company says it is cooperating
MZX said in the filing that it is cooperating with MDEQ and is “in discussions to resolve the matters through a single agreed order.” An agreed order is a common way state regulators settle environmental violations, often with a negotiated penalty and corrective steps.
No hearing dates have been made public.
Why stormwater permits matter
In Mississippi, construction projects that disturb an acre or more of land generally need coverage under MDEQ’s construction stormwater general permits before work begins. Larger projects must prepare a stormwater pollution prevention plan that spells out how the site will control erosion, such as with silt fences, sediment basins and quick re-seeding of bare ground. The goal is to keep mud and pollutants from washing into creeks, ditches and storm drains during rain.
Other legal challenges in Southaven
The state action comes as the company’s Southaven footprint faces scrutiny on several fronts. Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Debra Brown denied the federal government’s motion to end a lawsuit by the NAACP over gas-fired turbines on Stanton Road. The suit alleges the turbines were operated without required Clean Air Act permits. The judge ruled the EPA does not have unilateral authority to dismiss a citizen lawsuit.
Residents near the power plant have also raised concerns about noise and property buyouts, and the company has bought or leased additional property in the city in recent weeks.
DeSoto County News will report any agreed order or penalty decision once MDEQ acts.
