‘Trumpian-style’ move towards Data Centres, says North Tipp Councillor
“I don’t think the Shannon Pipe will get planning permission this time around” - Cllr Morris
A LOWER ORMOND Councillor has said that he is suspicious that the Irish Government is in the process of making a ‘Trumpian-style’ move in favour of Data Centres.
Cllr Seamus Morris criticised the fast-tracking of the government’s Critical Infrastructure Bill during the May meeting of Nenagh Municipal District.
"My suspicion,” he remarked, “is that the real reason Uisce Éireann wants the Eastern and Midlands Pipeline so badly is nothing at all to do with water shortages for the people but is in fact to do with the 136 Data Centres (some of the 136 are in the planning stage). These Data Centres will use double the amount of water needed for the whole population of Dublin. The mighty Shannon is being sacrificed for corporate greed to enrich the few. I also have a suspicion that the towns and regions along the route won’t benefit as much as they are saying.”
The Councillor pointed out that Dublin is one of Europe’s biggest Data Centre hubs. Data Centres require active cooling for servers to prevent overheating and system failure, typically using cooling towers that distribute water to computer room cooling units. “We are well aware of how much electricity they consume and the preferential treatment they receive in energy costs as opposed to householders; however, according to Dr Elaine Shaw who spoke at the recent An Taisce webinar on the water usage by Data Centres, there is a severe lack of transparency and data when it comes to actual water usage. There is no mandatory annual reporting, only planning applications which state intended water use.” Almost all of Ireland’s Data Centres are located in Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area. A single Data Centre can use as much water on a daily basis as up to 14,000 households.
Cllr Morris said the Critical Infrastructure Bill will drop Section 15 of the Climate Action Act “which means that SIDs (Strategic Infrastructure Developments) will not be climate action proofed. “I don’t think the Shannon Pipe will get planning permission this time around but I’ve a suspicion that the government will go at it again and at the second time, backed by the new Bill, will get the Pipe through. It’s shocking. It’s Trumpian-style politics.”