Data centre plan 'further blow', say campaigners

17 hours ago

Pamela BilalovaNorth East and Cumbria

Initial designs for the giant complex are being shared with residents at consultation events

Tract An illustration of how the data centre might look shows multi-storey grey buildings behind a line of trees and shrubs. A man is walking a dog along a footpath. A woman with a child is walking in the opposite direction. There is a low wooden fence along both sides of the path. It is drawn to look like a benign, genteel park with the buildings barely visible in amongst greenery. — Initial designs for the giant complex are being shared with residents at consultation events

Plans for a huge data centre are a "further blow" amid other proposals for solar farms and battery storage sites near villages, residents have said.

US-based developer Tract wants to create the eight-building complex, which it calls Durham Technology Park, on land between the villages of South Hetton, Murton and Easington Lane in County Durham.

East Durham Action Group (EDAG) said its impact must be considered alongside existing and proposed energy infrastructure, while South Hetton Parish Council chair Gillian Rodgers called the plans a "further blow" to the community.

Tract said it would listen "carefully" to concerns to find "acceptable ways" to mitigate the effects.

Two public consultation events were due to take place in South Hetton on Friday and on Monday.

The project is still in the initial design stage and the company "does not know at this time" who might operate the facility.

Initial plans show seven main "data halls" alongside a logistics building, car parking and on-site electricity substation.

Construction could take up to eight years.

A group has warned the impact of the site has to be considered in the context of other proposed developments in the area

Tract A satellite image shows the land where the centre will be built. It features an illustration of its buildings and shows several paths and landscaping. South Hetton Road is running alongside the site's southern border and separates the land from Easington Lane and South Hetton. Murton is to the north. — A group has warned the impact of the site has to be considered in the context of other proposed developments in the area

Rodgers said the proposals came "completely out of the blue" and the village could end up "almost completely surrounded" by technology with huge demands on power and water supply.

A solar farm development was approved on land across the road from the proposed data centre earlier this year.

There are plans for about three Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) developments of different sizes near the village along with another solar farm paired with BESS.

"It feels like we've already had the straw that broke the camel's back and this is just a further blow to us as a community," Rodgers said.

"We will look at what it is they're proposing but the likelihood of us being able to say that we would support this or welcome it in the context of everything else that we're currently facing, the likelihood is really low."

'Why here?'

EDAG said it was monitoring 15 planning applications which, if approved, could lead to "huge swathes of agricultural land being taken out of food production".

"In particular, EDAG is concerned about the potential risk of contamination to the Permian Magnesian Limestone aquifer, an important source of drinking water for the area and down the east coast of the country," it added.

Dr Brian Brown, who is from the group, said the cumulative impact of the developments was one of the major issues for the area.

Brown, who lives in Murton and also sits on the village's parish council, said people were "very angry" about the scale of the proposed development.

He said there were concerns about pressure on the electricity grid, the site's cooling systems and loss of green space around the former mining villages.

"These communities bore the brunt, if you like, of the first Industrial Revolution with the colliery waste," he said.

"We are acutely concerned about future generations, our children, our grandchildren.

"They will never know the green countryside, the beautiful landscapes that we enjoy every day."

Brian Brown says there are concerns about potential water contamination

Supplied Brian Brown has short white hair and blue eyes. He is wearing a blue and white pinstripe shirt and black suit jacket. Students in black graduation caps and robes are walking in the background. — Brian Brown says there are concerns about potential water contamination

Rodgers said: "Instead of being a former coal field that's just recovering and getting their green land and space back, we're going to go back to being an industrial wasteland again, with no fields left for anyone to enjoy.

"And the question would be, so why is everything going here?"

A Tract spokesperson said the region was "a prime candidate to leverage the grid infrastructure to attract jobs, investment and community benefits that come with data centres".

"Among the topics we expect to discuss with the community is the fact that construction technology has advanced significantly to the point where data centres can be cooled with closed loop systems that, when operational, use about as much water as an office complex," they said.

"Similarly, other systems can dramatically mitigate noise and emissions from standby generators that only run for a few hours a month."

It claimed the facility would bring 1,050 "direct, indirect and induced jobs once operational" and "thousands more" during construction, but did not explain how the figures were compiled.

The developer is hoping to submit an outline planning application in December.

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