The UK Green Party is calling on the British government to stop automatically classifying new data centers as “critical infrastructure,” arguing that the designation gives these facilities priority access to water and electricity over households and other essential services during shortages. Under the current rules, data centers are classified as critical infrastructure alongside sectors such as energy, water and food.
According to a press release, the party wants tighter planning rules, including full community consultation and higher environmental standards for new facilities. The call comes as data center construction is projected to quadruple in value by 2029 and some large facilities can consume 1.5 million liters of water per day. The Green Party demands that data centers should not receive priority over households, public services or food production during times of droughts.
“We need to slam the brakes on the rampant building of new data centers which could put our communities at risk of water shortages and drive up energy bills and yet are currently being waved through by our government. Data should serve people, not the other way around but right now, because data centers are designated as critical infrastructure, people come a poor second, with data centers even being given priority for water and electricity,” said Zack Polanski, Party leader of the Green Party of England and Wales.
“Ministers are also riding roughshod over local communities, preventing local people having a say by fast-tracking planning decisions. We need clear criteria to distinguish between data centers vital to national security or public services and those that simply serve private tech companies and private profit. And crucially there must be no scenario in which a data center receives priority in a drought over households, public services or essential food production.”
The party is particularly concerned about development in areas already facing water stress including London and southeast England as a single large-scale data center can consume enough water each day which is equivalent to a town of 10,000 people.
The Greens are also calling for a national strategy for AI infrastructure and their proposals include giving local communities a greater say over where data centers are built and directing new facilities towards brownfield sites near renewable energy hubs.
The party wants data centers to use renewable energy wherever possible and to publish audited annual figures for water and electricity consumption calling for greater use of water-efficient cooling systems, energy-saving technology and systems that capture waste heat for use in local heating networks.
Zack Polanski criticized the government’s approach to the environmental and social effects of AI infrastructure by saying, “Labour’s response to the environmental and social impacts of AI-driven data centers has been negligible and negligent. We need a new and comprehensive approach to AI and data centers that prioritises public control, environmental responsibility, protection of workers, joined up planning, and democratic accountability.”
The UK is increasingly dependent on foreign-owned infrastructure for critical services, including health care diagnostics and public safety. The Greens are calling for greater domestic investment in AI infrastructure, along with stronger regulation and transparency as AI systems play a growing role in decision-making.