Welcome actions from Minister but APRS calls for it to go further

Today APRS have written to Hannah Mary Goodlad MSP, Minister for Public Finance welcoming her announcements yesterday and asking for her to go further to bring in EIAs for all hyperscale data centres and a moratorium (pause) on applications for hyperscale data centres to allow for time to put in place the guidance and policies needed.

Yesterday The Minister for Public Finance announced:

• Planning direction that all local authorities need to report within seven days when they receive a planning application or a data centre over 50MW
• They Scottish Government were calling in the Gyle data centre decision
• They overturned two decisions that local authorities made on EIAs to ensure that West Edinburgh/Hermiston and Auchtertool data centres need to do EIAs

Read the letter

Yesterday the Scottish government issued screening directions which overturned the decisions of Fife and Edinburgh City Councils not to require an EIA for two hyperscale data centres.This follows the decision of the Scottish Government appointed reporter in the case of the Gyle Data Centre appeal who paused the appeal until the developers could provide an EIA.

APRS said it was ‘heartening’ and asked that the Minister consider doing the same for four more hyperscale data centres being proposed that, as it stands, would not be required to have an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). They also ask that measures should be put in place so all data centres over 50MW have to do an EIA.

The letter suggests that this can be done immediately as a direction under the Town and Country Planning Regulations, and that a longer term approach would be to amend the EIA Regulations which the Scottish Government have previously been reluctant to pursue.

APRS also welcome the planning direction issued by the Government that required local authorities to report within 7 days of a planning application for a data centre over 50MW coming in. But they say that the Scottish Government should extend this to all data centres that are in pre-planning so they get a better picture of the situation and that the information should be made public. 

Up till now APRS themselves has been monitoring each planning portal and updating the situation. They most recently updated the data centre map yesterday with the announcements of the EIAs decisions.

Kat Jones Director of APRS said

“We felt positive about the announcements yesterday as they seem to signal a change in approach from the Scottish Government. It certainly feels like they are starting to listen to us and the other campaigners.”

“We are delighted that three decisions by local authorities not to require an EIA have now been overturned, but we have written to the Minister to ask that she do the same for flour others which are in the same position. We hope that the Government are close to declaring that an EIA is required for all data centres over 50MW and have written to ask them to bring that measure in as soon as possible.”

“It is vital that the Government is across what is coming through the pipeline, including in pre-planning and that they make it publicly available in a transparent way. It is very hard for local people to engage with the planning system with applications at different stages of planning coming in with different reference numbers  and not connected in any way. We have tried to help make this more transparent with our data centre map and we have asked the Minister that she extend the planning direction so it captures all data centres over 50MW in the planning system.”  

APRS say that they believe that the combination of the requirement for reporting data centres in the planning system, with the decision to call in the Edinburgh Gyle appeal to be decided by ministers, could be a positive sign that further announcements are coming.

Kat said:

“The Scottish Government have, with the planning direction, the information they need to put a moratorium so we can pause and take stock. And the Scottish Government can take the time to deliver a strategic approach, guidance and to do the research that needs to be done. The fact that they have also called in the Gyle decision seems another positive indication of their direction of travel. But we need to see an announcement on this very soon”

“We are calling for the Minister to go further, not only in putting in place measures to ensure all hyperscale data centres have EIAs, and they collect information about all stages of the planning system, but that they use the tools that they have to press pause on hyperscale data centres while they do the work to create a strategic approach” 

“We are not, calling for these decisions to be made at Government level, we are asking for a moratorium or pause in planning, so that the impacts can be thoroughly and independently assessed, a strategic approach can be taken, and that these inform new national planning policy and planning guidance.”