Plans to build a 130ft-high AI data centre have been put on hold amid concerns the development would 'indirectly discriminate' against a group of travellers living next door.
The proposed warehouse in the commuter town of Bushey, Hertfordshire, would be located just 10m away from an established traveller pitch with 27 caravans.
A travellers group objected to the project, saying it would cause indirect discrimination to the inhabitants through 'loss of amenity, sleep disturbance and environmental stress'.
They added that travellers were a 'recognised ethnic group protected under the Equality Act' and that the site would cause them 'unacceptable harm'.
Hertsmere councillors have now voted to delay their decision on the warehouse, citing concerns about its visual impact and demands on the local water supply.
The move comes amid growing opposition to large-scale AI data centres across the UK, with communities accusing developers of 'short-circuiting any opposition'.
They fear the plans for the warehouses are being pushed through under 'special circumstances' - despite concerns they will ruin areas and create intolerable noise.
In Bushey, the proposed data centre would consist of four buildings, each around 130ft high.
Half the site is currently taken up by a former hotel which borders a traveller site (top right). There are fears the plans could 'indirectly discriminate' against the inhabitants living there
The data centre would be just 10 metres away from an established traveller site with 27 caravans
Plans for the data centre include four towers which could rise to 130ft
There would also be two substations and a visitor reception centre across around 18 acres of land, which is currently the site of the former Mercure Hotel.
It is expected to use up to 764 million litres of water a year – the equivalent consumption of 15,000 people – and 1,900GWh of electricity, more than four times the amount currently consumed by homeowners and businesses in the borough.
And according to the proposals, the warehouse would take around ten years to build.
Travellers group, GATE Herts, told Hertsmere Borough Council the long period of building work would undermine the nearby travellers' 'quality of life and privacy'.
'The proposed development, with its intensive industrial character and decade-long construction, would place a disproportionate burden on these protected communities,' they said in their consultation letter seen by the Daily Mail.
The data centre would also overlook a cemetery which holds some of the country's most esteemed Jewish figures, including the former Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks.
One resident, who did not want to be named but whose mother and grandparents are buried at the cemetery, previously told the Daily Mail the plans threatened to 'upend' the peaceful surroundings afforded at the site for grieving relatives.
She said: 'The cemetery provides a place of solace and quiet reflection in a countryside setting.
'Many like to come here, say prayers and take a moment to remember their loved ones.
Developers had submitted plans to build a data centre on formerly green-belt land which would use electricity at a rate comparable to all of Sheffield
'How can the council knowingly give the green light to a data centre so close to a cemetery? It's distressing and unethical.'
Homeowners also said they were concerned about how the data centre would affect the area in terms of electricity, water, ambient noise and traffic disruption during construction.
Greg Rogers, who lives in nearby Letchmore Heath, said it would be 'irresponsible' of the council to let the application proceed 'without due consideration of where the water and electricity will come from'.
Mr Rogers said the application was 'a huge irritant' but added: 'It's a worry because there doesn't seem to have been due consideration of how this is going to impact us.
'It seems like it is being rammed through for an agenda that is nothing to do with Hertsmere.'
On Thursday, Hertsmere councillors voted to defer their decision pending further negotiations with the developers, Ark Data Centres.
Janet Engels, from the Letchmore Heath Village Trust, told the planning committee: 'The 30-pitch Gypsy and traveller site is metres away.
'Your officers acknowledge the dominating effect of the buildings on the homes there, together with a medium-magnitude noise impact from daily generator testing.'
The rural cemetery currently has an open view of the sky
Data centres are under fire internationally for their environmental effects, and are already subject to moratoriums in US states including Democrat-run New York and Republican Texas.
In Scotland the SNP administration is reportedly considering its own ban.
But for the last two years the Westminster Government has allowed data centres in England to be designated as critical national infrastructure, allowing plans to sidestep restrictions on other forms of development.
In 2024, data centres in Britain used around 2,400GWh of energy, 2 per cent of the country's total consumption, a figure which grew to 2.5 per cent by July this year.
Less than six miles from the proposed data centre in Bushey, US tech firm Equinix is set to build a £3.9billion 85-acre campus in Potters Bar.
The Daily Mail has contacted Hertsmere Borough Council, GATE traveller group and Ark Data Centres for comment.