Thousands of people marched on Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh to protest against the development of large-scale AI data centres.

The protest was held as the Scottish Government is set to publish planning guidance on the buildings, which are essential for AI development but consume huge quantities of water and energy, saying its strategy will maximise the ‘public benefit’.

SNP Innovation Minister Alyn Smith’s claimed that the developments are the ‘the whisky bonds of the AI sector’.

However, plans for data centres in Cockenzie, East Lothian and Larbert have already caused anger, while a project in Chapelcross, Dumfries and Galloway, could be one of the largest in the world. There are 23 proposals for AI data centres of different sizes and in various stages of planning across Scotland.

More than 80 organisations and groups supported the march, including community campaigners affected by AI data centre proposals in their areas, climate organisations, trade unions, artists and anti-poverty charities.

Friends of the Earth Scotland senior campaigner Kim Pratt said she had been told an estimated 6,000 people had turned up to the protest.

She said: ‘We can see from today that there are lots of people from all over Scotland who really care about this issue and that impact is working.

‘We have seen that the people power from communities across Scotland are the ones who have forced the Scottish Government to make changes to slow down this process already and we need to keep pushing on because we know that this works, and we know that we can make a difference.’

She continued: ‘The way that AI data centres are being proposed in Scotland at the moment will only benefit those really big companies. Profit is being put before people and that is the system that we’re seeing across the world today.’

Prior to the march, Gail Scott, a campaigner with Cockenzie Communities Action Group, which is opposing plans for a 70-acre data centre site, said: ‘Our community is facing constant pollution and health risks from the potential construction of a hyperscale data centre on our doorstep.

‘These monstrosities destroy habitats for local wildlife, reducing the biodiversity of our community and could lead to strains on the local electricity supply. They’re also far too close to people’s homes and community facilities.
‘Elected representatives are meant to protect the interests of their citizens – not line the pockets of tech corporations. We deserve better.’

The march is part of a Europe-wide wave of protests to ‘stop dirty data centres’.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: ‘The Scottish Government will be publishing new planning guidance on data centres before the end of the year and, in parallel, is developing a strategic approach to maximising the public benefit from data centres located in Scotland.

‘Planning authorities are also now required to notify ministers of new data centre applications, with a new planning direction also mandating an environmental impact assessment to be submitted during planning for all new data centres with a power capacity exceeding 50 megawatts (MW).’

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