West Penn Township supervisors approved advertising an ordinance that would regulate the development of data centers.

Supervisors also set a public hearing to allow residents to comment on the proposed ordinance during Monday’s meeting.

The data center ordinance, Chairman Tony Prudenti explained, also regulates the mining of cryptocurrency and the development of electrical substations.

Copies of the ordinance will be provided to the township planning commission and the Schuylkill County Planning Commission.

As for the public hearing, it will be held at 5:30 p.m. June 1 at the township municipal building. The board’s regular meeting follows at 6 p.m.

The draft ordinance had been before the board for some time. At its March meeting, the board tabled its advertisement.

The ordinance would permit data centers in industrial districts with a special exception.

Solicitor Paul Datte explained last month that data centers would have to be in areas large enough to accommodate them.

He added that the township has a limited amount of large, industrial-zoned land and said centers often require a minimum of 30 to 50 acres.

Datte also said that the biggest issues for data center are power, water and noise.

The Planning Commission was given a draft copy of the ordinance in February.

Herb Woodring, assistant to the supervisors, compiled the information for the ordinance.