Data centre opponents say ‘huge public support’ for a moratorium

Campaigners against planned new data centres have said there is “huge public support” behind their calls for a moratorium.

The Scottish Government has so far resisted calls for a pause on new developments, despite a new requirement for environmental impact assessments to be carried out on two proposed new centres.

Public finance minister Hannah Mary Goodlad announced recently that these would be required for two proposed data centres in Auchtertool in Fife and Wester Hermiston in Edinburgh.

But campaigners against such sites want there to be an immediate moratorium, ahead of a requirement for environmental impact assessments to be carried out for all planned data centres.

They also insisted there should be an independent assessment of the need for hyperscale AI data centres in Scotland, looking at the impact these have on communities, land, water, the power grid and Scotland’s climate commitments.

Local petitions against eight proposed new data centres have gathered more than 52,000 signatures between them, while a petition lodged at Holyrood highlighting concerns has more than 20,000 signatures.

As MSPs prepare to return to Holyrood after the summer recess, 14 community groups campaigning against planned new data centres announced plans for a rally outside the Parliament.

They raised their “huge concern” about such sites in a letter to John Swinney, urging the First Minister to meet them when they are at Holyrood.

In a letter to the SNP leader, the campaigners said the Scottish Government must “start distinguishing between different types of data centres and identify whether they will bring benefits to Scotland”.

They hailed the supercomputer being built at Edinburgh University as an example of “where publicly funded data centres are bringing huge benefits in the case of ground-breaking research, including in the medical field”.

But with a number of proposed hyperscale data centres planned by private companies at different sites in Scotland, they warned that such developments could be “10-15 times bigger than these huge supercomputers” and would “be run by the US tech giants”.

The campaigners warned the First Minister these companies need such centres for “running AI models” which they said impacted on “safety online, creating deep fake videos, replacing jobs and being used by illegal elements to hack”.

This is “a huge concern to us”, they told Mr Swinney.

The letter was sent jointly by the groups alongside Action to Protect Rural Scotland (APRS), the countryside charity which has been at the forefront of the campaign against hyperscale data centres.

APRS director Kat Jones said: “It is clear that a moratorium on hyperscale AI data centres has huge public support across Scotland, and in across all political parties.

“When the Parliament starts up again next week, all eyes will be on what the First Minister has to say about it.”

Campaigner Victoria Plutshack said the “strength of feeling in the Edinburgh community can’t be oversold”.

She added: “These data centres are threatening our neighbourhoods, our green spaces and our environment.

“People are looking to the US experience and seeing concerns about energy bills, water quality and house prices.

“This is why we are coming together to gather at the Parliament. It’s critical that the Scottish Government put in place a moratorium while we figure out what’s right for Scotland.”

Rachel MacMillan, a campaigner from Bishopbriggs in East Dunbartonshire, said she was “standing with campaigns across Scotland to fight against the proposed data centre builds threatening to blight our communities and countryside”.

She added: “We are calling on the First Minister to push pause on these developments so we can investigate the true scale of their damage to Scotland.”

Lisa Beacham, a campaigner fighting plans for a data centre in Hurlford in Ayrshire, said: “Our village has been under a shadow for nearly a year now, from plans for a vast hyperscale data centre which would cover fields next to the village for as far as the eye can see.

“We are horrified that this kind of development would even be proposed, let alone promoted by the Scottish Government’s policies.

“We are calling on Holyrood to demand that the Scottish Government listen to local people and put a stop to this, and all the other developments that are threatening communities all over Scotland.

“These developments have national consequences and we need the Government to pay attention to what is happening.”

Meanwhile Hazel McIvor, who is fighting the planned data centre in Larbert, near Falkirk, said people are “waking up to what is being proposed here and they’re not prepared to simply stand by while big tech companies and governments put profit from AI before our community and our local environment”.

She added: “We might not have the resources and deep pockets these companies have but we do have grit and determination.”

Public Finance Minister Hannah Mary Goodlad said: “I have directed that planning authorities be required to notify ministers of new data centre applications exceeding 50 megawatts within seven days to help monitor their implications for wider infrastructure.

“Data centres represent a rapidly emerging sector and planning has an important role to play in considering applications, harnessing economic opportunities, and finding solutions which align with our climate goals.

“We must balance the economic and employment interests in developing data centres with national energy, climate and community wealth building ambitions, which are vital to our future prosperity, as well as the potential impact on local communities.

“It is essential to secure public benefits from this type of development, and I am clear that voices of communities that will be affected will be central to any considerations on data centres.”