Data Centres could become Scotland’s biggest polluters, MSPs told

Today (29 October), environmental campaigners, speaking at a Parliamentary inquiry, revealed that plans for AI data centre developments in Scotland could lead to 14 million tonnes of new climate pollution each year, making data centres the largest emissions sector in the country by 2030. 

There are 23 proposals for AI data centres of different sizes and in various stages of planning across Scotland. Campaigners also warned that these centres could consume half of Scotland’s remaining climate pollution budget by 2045, further endangering legal commitments.  

Current data centre capacity in Scotland is around 50MW across a network of small data centres which support internet use and data storage. The new generation of AI data centres, including the world’s largest 1000MW proposal, would be owned by giant tech companies and used for creating controversial AI slop, fake images and other content. 

Public outcry about AI data centres

Following public outcry about proposals, the Climate Action Committee at Holyrood is leading an inquiry on the environmental impacts of AI data centres. Today, they heard from Friends of the Earth Scotland and Action to Protect Rural Scotland, two environmental organisations which, along with community groups, have been opposing the rapid expansion of AI data centres across Scotland.  

Scotland’s carbon budget allows for 406 million tonnes of climate pollution to be emitted between 2026 and 2045. The Scottish Climate Change Plans sets out how these emissions will be used for essential activities such as heating homes, transport and food production. If all 23 data centres were built, they would use up half of remaining Scotland’s carbon budget (208 million tonnes of greenhouse gases) by 2045. This would mean that other sectors of Scottish life, such as farming, would need to cut their climate emissions much further and faster and mean budgets and targets set out in law would be missed. 

Kim Pratt, Senior Campaigner with Friends of the Earth Scotland said:  

“It would be a reckless dereliction of duty of the Scottish Government to continue allowing billionaire tech companies to push these enormous, polluting AI data centres across Scotland without understanding the impacts they will have on our environment and our communities.  

“Our assessment has revealed that if all these AI data centres were built it would consume more than half of Scotland’s entire carbon budget from 2026 to 2045.  

“Imposing these AI data centres here would affect every person in Scotland. They would destabilise our energy systems, further increase the cost of household energy bills and mean that other areas, from our homes to farming, would have to cut climate pollution even further and faster to stand any chance of meeting our climate goals.  

“The Scottish Government needs to show how AI data centres would benefit people in Scotland and who would bear the costs before any decisions are made. Next month, thousands of people will march in Edinburgh to call for their right to have a say on AI data centres before it is too late.” 

Massive energy demands from AI data centres

AI data centres have massive energy demands, which are not accounted for in the expansion of renewables or Scotland’s Climate Change Plan. In the longer-term, additional growth in renewables might be enough to meet the needs of data centres, but in the early years the mostly likely outcome is having to import more gas-fired electricity and burn more gas at Peterhead power station. 

So far, only two of the 23 proposals have published assessments of their environmental impacts. Campaigners told the committee that these assessments greatly underestimate the carbon impacts of the developments because of unrealistic projections of renewable energy supply.  

Kat Jones, Director of Action to Protect Rural Scotland said: 

“Parliament is now starting to take a proper look at the wave of hyperscale data centres being faced by communities across Scotland, and we are very grateful to the Committee for the opportunity to speak to their concerns. 

“If every hyperscale data centre in the grid queue was to be built it would triple Scotland’s peak energy demand, we would see new records set for air pollution, and the process of decarbonising our economy would be set back by decades. These projects have come forward without a strategy, without a grid assessment, and without an assessment of their climate impacts. I hope the Committee will hold Ministers’ feet to the fire until this basic work is done.” 

The Committee also spoke to environmental experts from Ireland where data centres now take up 23% of national energy supply. In Ireland, household energy bills have risen by €360, amounting to €715 million across the country, due to data centre demand. Ireland’s energy regulator has warned that data centre demand is now so high the risk of blackouts has increased and the grid is more vulnerable to shocks.  

Thousands of people, representing communities and groups from across Scotland, are expected at the Stop AI Data Centres March on Saturday 14 November in Edinburgh.