Forget about whether industrial solar arrays should be permitted on farmland, this year’s hot-button issue is the explosive growth of data centers — the space they take, the water they use, the noise they make and the energy they consume.

It is good, then, that Ohio lawmakers voted this week to advance a proposal that would create a commission to study data centers. If you’re wondering why that didn’t happen long ago, you’re not alone. But better late than never.

Assuming the commission is formed, however, those involved must have a sense of urgency about what many in Ohio understand is a pressing question. There has already been the usual bickering about who shall make up the commission, though the majority of members must have specific subject matter expertise in data center operations, local governments, public utilities and tax incentive policy, according to a report by the Ohio Capital Journal.

Buckeye State residents have a range of opinions on the matter. The Ohio Farm Bureau says many of its members are worried about whether the amount of land being committed is worth the cost.

“Once farmland is lost, it’s likely gone forever,” said Evan Callicoat, director of state policy for the bureau.

But the Ohio Chamber of Commerce says data centers are a booming industry that will mean jobs and tax revenue. The Buckeye Institute notes support for data centers could be framed in national security terms, as we are in the midst of a “tech Cold War” with China, the Capital Journal reports.

Folks such as Nikki Gerber, who runs a canoe rental company in Adams County, told the Capital Journal she hopes the commission can come up with safeguards for our region’s natural resources.

“Because the way they have been operating is stripping us of everything those before us learned from living through the industrial development of the past,” she said.

It’s true. Lawmakers are late to the game in considering formation of such a commission. But that doesn’t mean they are too late to bring some order to the explosion of an industry few had even heard of, not too many years ago.