Campaigners in the UK are to stage protests on Friday and Saturday to highlight the dangers posed by the unchecked expansion of data centres to society and the environment.
The demonstrations, coordinated by Global Action Plan UK, include what is planned to be a large event called March Against the Machines set to begin outside the offices of OpenAI in London on Saturday at noon.
Protections
Protestors want the government to bring in stronger protections amid the tech sector’s aggressive plans for power- and water-hungry AI compute facilities.
Artificial intelligence tasks, which are driving current data centre plans, are particularly energy-intensive due to their hefty compute requirements and the high power consumption of the specialised AI accelerator chips involved.
The protests come after the UK government acknowledged making a “serious logical error” in approving a proposed 90 megawatt data centre project in the west of London without appropriate environmental safeguards, and said planning permission should be rescinded, in a decision being challenged by the developer.
“Communities across the UK are fighting to have their voices heard but are being drowned out while developers and big tech lobbyists hold the ear of government,” said Oliver Hayes, head of campaigns at Global Action Plan.
Power demand
It is estimated that more than 100 data centres are being planned across the UK, although there is no formal definition for such facilities and they are often shrouded in secrecy.
Energy regulator Ofgem has said some 140 data centres are seeking grid connections, and would require 50 GW of capacity at peak times, compared to peak demand of 45 GW for the entire grid of the UK on a recent winter’s day.
Tech companies including Microsoft and OpenAI have in recent weeks launched initiatives that they say would reduce the impact of their data centres on local communities, amid a growing backlash.
