There was a mixed response to the federal government’s AI-driven data centre plan yesterday with Greenpeace Australia Pacific calling for an urgent pause on data centre approvals until legislation is in place setting out the new standards.
The government’s AI legislation will be introduced in 2027 with no safeguards in place for the rest of the year.
As a result Greenpeace has called for an urgent moratorium on the construction and approval of new data centres until appropriate regulations and safeguards are in place to protect the climate and communities.
Greenpeace Australia Pacific head of climate and energy, Joe Rafalowicz, said the Prime Minister is rolling out the red carpet for water-guzzling energy vampires, with no plans to regulate them until at least 2027.
The Australian Institute of Architects national president, David Wagner, agreed data centres have major impacts on energy networks, water supplies and surrounding communities.
He said this is why data centres need strategic planning from day one.
“If we get the planning right now, data centres can support economic growth while balancing the needs of communities, infrastructure and the environment,” Wagner said.
“Data centres are more than just buildings. They’re integrated infrastructure systems that need coordinated planning across energy, water and land use.”
Aon Australia head of construction, Mary-Catherine Hamill, said this opportunity for Australia will depend on how well industry balances speed of investment with credible, sustainable outcomes that maintain confidence from investors, communities and regulators.
“Australia’s proposed standards for AI and large data centres highlight a growing tension between accelerating digital investment and managing the real-world demands these assets place on energy, water and local infrastructure,” she said.
“From a risk perspective, the focus now shifts to how these expectations are delivered in practice.
“At the scale we are seeing today, decisions around site selection, power strategy and design increasingly determine whether projects can attract capital, remain insurable and recover from disruption as they grow.”
The federal government’s new framework for data centres include a legal obligation by operators to underwrite their own new power supply, pay their full share of connection costs, reduce power when needed to strengthen the grid, and they must be as water efficient as possible.
The plan also includes the establishment of an Office of AI within the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet to accelerate implementation of the new rules on a national level.