Scottish Government Adds Environmental Check to New Data Centre Applications

Large-scale data centres will require environmental assessment, says minister

Public finance minister Hannah Mary Goodlad announced the policy ahead of a debate calling for a moratorium on such facilities.

Scottish Government issues new rules for data centres ahead of key debate

The Scottish Government has announced tighter rules for AI data centre applications ahead of a vote on a moratorium on the projects

Scottish Government adds environmental check to new data centre applications

The announcement comes on a day where the Scottish Greens have scheduled a vote calling for a moratorium on new AI data centres

Environmental impact assessments become mandatory for large Scottish data centres

ALL new large-scale data centres in Scotland will have to undergo an Environmental Impact Assessment under new planning rules announced by the Scottish Government. The new direction will require an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) to be submitted as part of the planning process for every new data centre with a power capacity exceeding 50 megawatts […]

Large-scale data centres will require environmental assessment, government confirms

The change will affect plans for all new data centres with a power capacity exceeding 50 megawatts

Environment assessments don’t go far enough, moratorium still crucial

The Scottish Government’s new guidance on hyperscale data centres represents the bare minimum of action Ministers could have taken, and does not stop the need for a moratorium on new sites, say the Scottish Greens. The comments from Patrick Harvie MSP come as the Scottish Government has announced that Environmental Impact Assessments will now be required on future applications. Councils are facing a surge of applications for massive new data cen…