Finland’s Supervisory Agency (LVV) has told the company behind Google’s planned data centres in Muhos and Kajaani to suspend work that would “significantly alter the environment” by 23 October, after more than 300 hectares of forest were cleared, at one site without the mandatory environmental impact assessment. The developer has until 14 October to explain itself, or face enforcement proceedings.
The sites are part of the €13bn investment Google announced less than a month ago, its largest single investment in Europe, and Google says it “fell short” of its own standards and will follow the agency’s guidance. Interesting test of how far Nordic countries will bend environmental rules to win the AI data-centre race.
When I heard Google was going to build more data centres in Finland, I thought they would perhaps already be aware that there are certain procedures and regulations over here, especially regarding the ecological impact, and they’d probably need to exercise the necessary caution here. I mean, they already have data centres here, they should know what it’s like.
I did not expect them to be like “😃 let’s get chopping boys 🪓 yeehaw” and the government would actually need to be like “😡 you can’t do that” and then Google would need to be like “😣 well whoopsie daisy, we got a bit ahead of ourselves, sowwy 🥺”.
But I guess the AI mania makes companies stupider in the ways that we all are familiar with by now.
It is not being stupid, it is testing if they can break the law and get away with it, like in their home vountry.