AI data centre proposal approved by Tasmanian council

A council has approved a proposal for an artificial intelligence data centre in northern Tasmania, despite significant community opposition.At a council meeting on Tuesday, six of the seven present George Town councillors voted in favour of Firmus Technologies' proposed 288-megawatt AI data centre in the Bell Bay Advanced Manufacturing Zone at the former Gunns pulp mill site in Long Reach.The council received 349 submissions from the public about the proposal, while an electronic petition of nearly 6,000 signatures called on councillors to vote the project down.Council's planners recommended the project be approved with conditions, despite community concerns on power and water use; air, noise and light pollution; and the environmental impact."In some instances, concerns raised in representations do not directly relate to the applicable provisions of the planning scheme and, as such, cannot be addressed through the planning approval process," council planners wrote in the agenda."This is not intended to diminish the importance or legitimacy of those concerns, rather council is required to undertake a statutory assessment with a defined scope and may only consider matters that are relevant under the planning scheme and within its powers as the planning authority."Firmus Technologies' proposed AI data centre, if approved, will be built at the former Gunns Pulp Mill site near Bell Bay. Image taken from a George Town Council meeting agenda document, August 21. (Supplied)Firmus is also in the process of building a 104-megawatt AI data centre in the Launceston suburb of St Leonards, and has submitted a development application for a 52-megawatt AI data centre at Wesley Vale in the state's north-west.The approval of the Bell Bay project means the company will become the state's largest power user, ahead of the major industrials including Bell Bay Aluminium.Firmus Technologies' construction site in St Leonards, as seen in June. (ABC News: Morgan Timms)Residents protest AI data centreAbout 80 people gathered outside the George Town Council building ahead of the vote to encourage councillors to vote no.Anti-data centre protesters gathered outside George Town Council before the vote. (ABC News: Emily Smith)Ayla Heawood, 15, said her parents let her miss school to join the protest."If they're going to use our land, the very, very least they can do is tell us about the water usage, the power usage, and everything, because it's our right to know," she said."It will be bad for the environment, so the jobs can't be the sole reason why we're building this."An anti-data centre protester at the rally. (ABC News: Emily Smith)Katherine Collins, who has lived in George Town for 25 years, feels like decisions on AI data centres should be made by the state government, not local councils."I think it's the energy security that worries me the most, I really can't see how we're going to have the energy in Tasmania for this," she said.Anti-data centre protester Ashly Craigh with Wally at the protest. (ABC News: Emily Smith)Ashly Craig joined the protest with her dog Wally, who was kitted out in a vest saying: "more nature, less data"."I think it's obviously going to drain our power; we don't have enough independent reports about what the effects are going to be on biodiversity, nature, flora, fauna," she said.Liz Flaherty said she would "keep fighting" the AI data centre."This is only going to get bigger, like the pulp mill rallies did," she said.Conditions attached to approvalGeorge Town Council imposed a number of conditions on Firmus for its Bell Bay project.The company would need to undertake a noise survey within 60 days of beginning operations and submit an air quality assessment within 12 months.Before commencing building works, Firmus will need to submit a new bushfire and emergency management plan, after the company incorrectly reported the number of diesel generators it would have on site as 128 instead of 276.The council has stipulated the diesel generators must only be operated "during an unscheduled failure or interruption of the mains electricity supply"; for routine inspection, testing or maintenance; or in response to a genuine emergency. Council has imposed a 24-hour combined yearly limit on the simultaneous operation of more than one diesel generator.Firmus has previously committed to reducing its power use by using its generators when the grid is under stress."We build in the capability to respond to grid signals every five minutes — cutting our load by switching to on-site backup generation or shifting non-urgent computing work," the company stated.