THE Greens (WA) have called on the state government to immediately impose a moratorium on new AI data centre projects, as poorly planned proposals pop up throughout communities in Western Australia.

The move comes after US voters overwhelmingly rejected new proposals during the midterm elections with 40 of 41 proposals voted against and US companies now eyeing Australia for expansion.

The moratorium on data centres will demand a clear WA government planning policy on Hyperscale AI data centres to include a requirement for them to run off 100 per cent renewable energy and closed circuit cooling with no external water use.

They also want a specific planning definition for Hyperscale AI data centres, saying they are not just warehouses and storage (the current zoning) and must be in existing light industrial areas, not within 500m of homes or involve the clearing of bushland.

“In WA, there are a number of new hyperscale AI data centres proposed, each without community support, and posing significant risk to the local environment, water supplies and some likely powered by gas and other fossil fuels,” a spokesperson said.

Gingerah Energy’s Project Meridien in the Kimberley region will be the largest data centre in the state if approved and is proposed to be powered by gas sourced through fracking.

Hazelmere data centre was proposed in October this year, which came five months after residents of the nearby Helena Valley made it abundantly clear they did not want a data centre in their community.

Greens (WA) Planning spokesperson Dr Brad Pettitt MLC said the government is failing to get in the driver’s seat on data centres, and as a result communities are being forced to fight against badly placed proposals often relying on gas, not renewable energy.

“Huge data centres are not just warehouses, they need to be given a specific planning definition and closely managed,” he said.

“Hyperscale AI data centres have a massive environmental footprint. They’re noisy, energy-guzzling industrial monsters that use huge amounts of water.

“Residents like those living in Hazelmere shouldn’t continuously worry about when the next data centre could be proposed at their doorstep.

“This community made their opposition to massive data centres known when they successfully blocked GreenSquareDC’s planned centre in May this year, only to have another project put forward months later.”

Mr Pettitt said it was time the government paused approvals and did some serious planning to put communities first.