Free speech under fire in Coweta’s data center debate

In Coweta County, the debate over the 832-acre “Project Sail” data center has taken an unsettling turn. At its center is a clash over free speech and public accountability.

Commissioner John Reidelbach recently filed a formal complaint against a Coweta County resident who analyzed the proposed data center site using publicly available state and federal data with standard environmental science methods.

Instead of challenging the data or questioning the methodology, Reidelbach sought to have the resident reprimanded by his employer and urged him to issue a “clarifying” statement, labeling the work as “misinformation.”

Reidelbach did not send the email from his government-issued account. It became available through the open records process because the recipient is a government employee.

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