A protest organized by vocal opponents of the Bell AI data centre project in the Rural Municipality (RM) of Sherwood successfully disrupted a recent council meeting. An organization dubbed “No Data Centres on Treaty Land” announced demonstrators would be protesting the scheduled RM council meeting for Wednesday, Sept. 23. Some of the approximately 200 protestors ended up storming the meeting, bringing proceedings to a halt. Many of those who attended Wednesday’s demonstration feel there hasn’t been enough public consultation on the $52 billion project currently under construction near Regina. Others have environmental concerns about the project. “The water, the noise that comes off of these things, these are environmental issues that I think are relevant,” demonstrator Bill Clary told CTV News. “The impact on the economy too of even just accessing microchips and stuff like that. This kind of stuff gobbles up so much of those types of technologies.” The group held its first demonstration in April, when the RM council voted in favour of approving the initial 300-megawatt (MW) facility. The latest demonstration follows the announcement that the project has now quadrupled in scope, to 1.2 gigawatts. The group claims the vote to approve the data centre project was “undemocratic, neglectful, and corrupt”, arguing there was a lack of public consultation. Additionally, the group shares deep concerns over power and water usage and environmental impacts. The provincial government has defended the data centre by highlighting the jobs and economic spinoffs that will be created by the multi-billion dollar project. The province, and Bell Canada, have also repeatedly responded to questions of power and water concerns, pointing to Saskatchewan’s new “Bring Your Own Power” policy, and the centre’s closed loop coolant system not requiring a continuous supply of water. The Bell AI data centre is one of the largest projects in Canadian history. Ray Orb, the interim reeve of the RM of Sherwood, says it and the entire province will benefit from tax revenue and jobs generated. “We need to get that message out and we also need to get the message out that the data centres that are going to be built in Canada, they’re going to be built somewhere in this country. We would prefer to have it here,” Orb said. “We need it in Canada because of the data sovereignty.” Bell Canada says it understands that a project of this scale prompts questions and it is committed to answering them. “We will keep sharing relevant information, engaging with affected communities and working through all applicable environmental assessments, permits, approvals and public processes as plans advance,” the company said in a written statement. The first phase of the Bell AI data centre is approved and construction is proceeding. Future phases will require addition approvals from the RM of Sherwood. The RM says it intends to make a greater effort to inform and consult the public going forward. CTV News, CP24 and BNN Bloomberg are divisions of Bell Media, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of BCE Inc.
