Chilean activists block construction of Google AI data center

DW (English)

An environmental organization has successfully halted the construction of a Google AI data center over concerns the site could exacerbate regional water scarcity.

Transcript

00:00Environmental groups in Chile are fighting back against the construction of more data centers.

00:07Many companies, including tech giant Google, have created server farms in the Santiago region,

00:12and more are being planned.

00:18Activists like Tania Rodriguez have long been sounding the alarm.

00:24We recognize the havoc these data centers wreak on nature.

00:28Data centers that are not necessarily beneficial for Chileans,

00:32but rather for other countries in the world.

00:34They generate very few jobs, and the environmental impact is severe.

00:41Tania Rodriguez is a member of the environmental organization MOSACAD.

00:46The group is protesting the expansion of data centers in the region, including a new Google project.

00:52MOSACAD activists say these data centers have a huge impact on Chile's water supply.

00:59The data center itself would use 169 liters of water per second.

01:05That's the equivalent of nearly nine Olympic-sized swimming pools every day,

01:09which are filled and drained, because this isn't reusable water.

01:13Given the increasing droughts we're experiencing, this is a mind-boggling waste.

01:20Environmentalists say the data center's high water consumption puts the Kilikoro wetland

01:25at risk.

01:30Santiago does not have the luxury of large water reserves.

01:34And actually, the region is in a drought period that's predicted to stretch on for years.

01:41Many people used to grow crops.

01:43There are places here where they used to grow strawberries, and now they can't do anything.

01:47They have to buy everything, and they don't even have water to use in the bathroom.

01:52With government support, Santiago has become a popular location in Latin America for data centers.

02:01Chile is attractive because our laws are lax.

02:04We have almost no legislation.

02:06Plus, there's no political responsibility.

02:12The activists recognize that there are also advantages to AI.

02:17The activists recognize that there are also advantages to AI.

02:21But they want the environmental burden of data centers to be shared more fairly with other countries.

02:30They arrive here and want to do these huge construction projects, which are coming from Europe.

02:35So they bring them here, to Latin America.

02:39Their protests have been successful.

02:42A Chilean court halted Google's data center project,

02:45ruling that it had to consider its environmental impact.

02:49Google has planted trees to offset emissions,

02:52but the region continues to be affected by drought.

02:55Chilean activists continue to fight for change,

02:58and hope that the government will implement stricter environmental regulations in the future.

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