Demonstrators gathered outside the New Brunswick legislature just before Tuesday’s Throne Speech to protest a number of proposed projects either supported or being mulled over by Susan Holt’s Liberal government. About 300 protestors held signs and voiced their opposition to the Sisson Mine project, a natural gas power plant in Tantramar and an AI data centre inside Saint John’s Spruce Lake Industrial Park. Premier Holt spoke with a few demonstrators before entering the legislature, including Ashley Anthony from the Save Lorneville group, which opposes the proposed Spruce Lake data centre (being pitched by Alberta-based Beacon Data Centres and U.S.-based Voltagrid). Arseneault asked Holt for her own personal opinion on AI data centres, with Holt citing the province’s ongoing development of a policy framework. “I need to see answers to the answers we laid out in the draft policy,” said Holt. “Can they do it without impact on water? Can they do it without impact on energy rates? Can they do it with a positive benefit on the community? And if they cannot, then they haven’t met our threshold that the project would need to have to be able to go forward.” Arseneault answered “no” to each of the premier’s points, later telling reporters the project is being pitched inappropriately as a patriotic opportunity. “This isn’t about Canadian digital sovereignty,” said Anthony. “This is an American company. These are going to be American tenants. This is just propaganda that they’re trying to feed you to try and give you a false sense of security to make you feel this is economically viable, when it’s not.” Demonstrators also voiced their opposition to the government’s review of hydraulic fracturing in the province, and specifically the future of a fracking moratorium which began 12 years ago. Dr. Chris Arsenault, a family physician based in Fredericton, attended Tuesday’s demonstration and said the province isn’t equipped to conduct a thorough review of the topic. “They’re not studying it, they don’t have the capacity to study it,” said Dr. Arseneault. “The department of health has been gutted systemically over the last 15 years. It does not have the capacity to do health impact assessments.” The deadline for the public survey portion of the province’s fracking review is Friday, with a final report expected in January. For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
