From Amarillo to Waco, College Station to Harlingen, Texans are raising concerns over the proliferation of data centers — and the tremendous amounts of water and energy they are poised to suck up.

Seemingly overnight, these sprawling campuses of computer servers meant to store information from websites and power artificial intelligence are popping up all over the state.

Just this month, the largest proposed data center in the U.S. was approved in Pecos County. That follows the start of construction of a $500 billion data center on the outskirts of Abilene and a planned 5,800-acre project in the Texas Panhandle that will include the world's "largest energy campus," according to its backers.

Together with more modest proposals near Waco, and just outside of Harlingen, Texas is emerging as a contender to challenge Virginia's dominance in data centers.

In many of these places, Texans are demanding local elected officials intervene.

The small town of Lacy Lakeview north of Waco is partnering with the developer Infrakey on a proposed $10 billion data center, drawing an organized opposition campaign from rural neighbors around the 520-acre site.

Since November, the opposition has circulated a petition with some 3,000 signatures, created a Facebook group and website and held regular strategy meetings that have been attended by political leaders such as state Rep. Pat Curry, R-Waco.

Rena Schroeder, a Republican candidate for Texas Senate District 22, has also made appearances at the meetings, promoting herself as the voice for rural data center opponents.

Similar grassroots resistance efforts are taking place across the state.

In Harlingen, several residents addressed the City Commission during a public meeting after learning of a developer's plan to build a data center in their area. They asked their elected officials to oppose the development, citing water and electricity use concerns.