Seth Sauer-Hart
DemocraticQ1 The cost of electricity and water are on the rise with nearby data centers straining current resources in combination with increased energy costs to consumers. How will you navigate the economic, public health, and environmental impacts when considering new data centers and data center permissions, in general?
I support a moratorium on hyperscale data centers while we gather community and environmental impact data from the ones already built and running in our state and throughout the country. Then we use that data in combination with expert and community feedback to create the legislation around how we make data centers work for South Carolinians. We can’t ‘move fast and break things’ when we are talking about peoples’ lives.
Q2 How will you ensure science workforce preparedness in community-based institutions like K–12 schools and community colleges across our state?
I think we need to stop using tax dollars for private school vouchers programs and invest that money into our public schools. In a world where AI could take any job after a breakthrough development, I feel we also need to invest in trade schools and improve our job placement support in our state, including possibly funding courses at community colleges for re-training workers in badly impacted sectors.
Q3 What steps, if any, do you believe government should take to protect public health and community wellbeing (e.g., vaccine access, environmental health risks such as PFAS or asbestos, disease prevention, or emergency preparedness)?
I believe it is a core responsibility of government. In this era of social media, AI, and echo chambers, an objective truth is of paramount importance when it comes to health and wellbeing. I feel the government should provide clear, evidence based and expert backed guidance and solutions to these issues.
Q4 As the world is becoming more information dense, science mistrust has grown. How do you think elected officials can work with scientists to build the general public’s trust in science?
Yes this! But the first thing the legislature of this state needs to do is to stop passing laws based on feelings and personal beliefs, and get back to making decisions based on research and data. If our politicians are always contradicting the settled science, then they are part of the problem not the solution.
Elected officials have a connection to their communities and can leverage that to increase trust in science (South Carolina is ranked 42nd in trust in science!). I feel that every time a new law, initiative, fund/grant, etc. is passed by the state legislature, it should be accompanied by blurb about how it aligns with the scientific consensus on the topic. It is a great opportunity to showcase the practical implementations of scientists’ work.