Secaucus mayor says 'computer glitch' cause of thousands of gallons of diesel to spill from Secaucus data center
The fuel entered Anderson Creek, which flows into the Hackensack River.
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About 5,500 gallons of diesel fuel spilled from an Equinix data center into a tributary of the Hackensack River last Friday, prompting an ongoing cleanup and renewed criticism from environmental advocates.
The spill happened on the evening of Sept. 11 at Equinix's NY2 facility, according to a statement from the company. Equinix said operations staff detected a fuel release from a storage tank outside the building, stopped the leak and brought in Clean Harbors to begin remediation. The company said it also contacted the Secaucus Fire Department, which responded and notified the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Hudson Regional Health Commission.
Secaucus Mayor Michael Gonnelli said the spill was the result of a "computer glitch."
"This data center's been here since 2001, over 25 years. We've never had a problem before this time," Gonnelli said.
The DEP said in a statement that the spill, reported Saturday morning, involved No. 2 diesel fuel from a storage tank at the facility and has been contained. A contractor is removing oil from the tributary, and crews are expected to remain on scene for several days, the agency said.
At the site, Gonnelli said cleanup was roughly three-quarters complete, though the smell of oil still lingered in the air. Barriers have been placed in the waterway to keep the remaining oil contained to that section and out of the larger river.
"There's a lot of complaints about data centers, I can tell you that," Gonnelli said. "But right now, they did everything they had to do."
The DEP said there are no drinking water intakes in the area and that no impacts to wildlife have been reported.
Still, the spill has drawn criticism from environmental groups pushing for tighter restrictions on data centers statewide. Ben Dziobek, executive director of the Climate Revolution Action Network (CRAN), a Gen-Z-led climate organization advocating for a ban on data centers in New Jersey, said in a statement that the incident should reaffirm the need for a statewide moratorium.
"This is what happens when the data center industry is allowed to operate without any rules, and new ones are popping up all over New Jersey," Dziobek said in a statement. "We need a statewide ban right now before they do any more damage to our communities."
Dziobek argued that local bans are insufficient to address the impact.
"Leaving this to individual towns doesn't make any sense," he said. "Data centers create problems that don't stop at municipal boundaries, whether it's pollution or straining the grid and driving up everyone's electric bills. Just look at how Jersey City and Bayonne banned data centers, but they're still stuck with a polluted river thanks to a diesel spill in Secaucus. No town can protect itself alone."
Equinix, which has operated in Secaucus for more than two decades, said it is conducting a full investigation to determine the root cause of the leak and prevent it from happening again.
"We are working closely with those agencies, local officials, and community stakeholders to ensure a thorough remediation," the company said, adding that it remains "committed to resolving this quickly, transparently, and responsibly."
