Australian Greens demanding regulatory halt on new datacenter approvals

Senator for South Australia and Chair of the parliamentary inquiry into artificial intelligence and data centres, Sarah Hanson-Young, has called for a moratorium on the building and approval of new data centres in Australia until regulations are properly established.

"The big AI companies are getting their hooks into governments at all levels and we need a pause to allow time for public consultation and proper parliamentary scrutiny," Hanson-Young said. "We need a moratorium on the building and approval of new data centres in Australia until we get the regulations right."

The Senator criticized South Australia's government announcement as inadequate, stating it represents "nothing more than greenwashing, talking up renewables without delivering any commitment to power the new data centres with renewable energy." She pointed to the potential for gas companies like Santos to continue supplying energy to these facilities, thereby entrenching fossil fuels in the system.

Hanson-Young raised concerns about environmental and resource protection, particularly water usage. "We need a real plan to protect our drinking water and precious River Murray. As the driest state on the driest continent we cannot just hand our water over to big tech."

She also flagged concerns at the federal level, noting that Industry Minister Tim Ayres "failed to rule out doing a deal with AI companies allowing them to have an exception to copyright laws. This would sell out Australian artists and creative industries."

Drawing parallels to previous regulatory failures, Hanson-Young warned: "We failed to regulate the big social media companies and are now seeing the massive harm that they can cause. We cannot make the same mistakes with AI companies. Governments must regulate this industry."

The Senator emphasized that power-hungry data centres threaten Australia's renewable energy transition, potentially undermining the rooftop solar installations and renewable grid developments led by South Australia. Until proper protections for energy, water, and Australian creative industries are in place, "approval and development must be paused," she argued.

Submissions to the Senate inquiry into data centres remain open, with Hanson-Young inviting public participation in bringing "much needed parliamentary scrutiny to this rapidly growing industry."