SpaceX loses bid to dismiss lawsuit over xAI data center pollution — facility allegedly emits over 5,00 tons of nitrogen oxides and 47 tons of cancer-causing formaldehyde annually

A judge has rejected SpaceX's motion to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that the turbines powering xAI's Colossus 2 data center in Southaven, Mississippi, are emitting excessive air pollution. According to the NAACP, the facility allegedly emits over 5,000 tons of nitrogen oxides and 47 tons of formaldehyde — a known carcinogen — annually.

The legal battle began in April 2026 when the NAACP, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center and Earthjustice, filed the case against xAI and its subsidiary, MZX Tech, for operating a gas-fired power plant without the necessary air permits. SpaceX, which owns and operates xAI, claims that the company's turbines fall under the 'mobile sources' category that exempts them from air permitting requirements.

However, the judge ruled against this classification and affirmed that the turbines are subject to Clean Air Act permitting requirements. If the data center's operations continue as planned, SpaceX anticipates constructing a total of 860,000 Nvidia GB300 GPUs across four Colossus buildings, with the facility expected to be operational by the end of 2026.