South African Data Centre MORATORIUM now!

Some of the areas of particular concern to us are:

• Electricity demand: Large data centres consume huge amounts of electricity. While our grid is currently stable, it is still fragile. It is unclear how we will meet this huge new demand for electricity. Load-shedding in South Africa cost the economy dearly, and devastated countless small businesses. Data centre developments are often also associated with a rise in electricity costs, which we can ill afford.

• Water demand: Large areas of South Africa are seasonally dry and drought-prone. We do not have “spare” water, and the Dept of Water and Sanitation saying that “there is no need to panic because the data centres will pay for the water”, is not helpful and misses the point completely. They may have the money to pay for the water, but there won’t be enough to go around. The communities that do not have access to clean water will be the first ones to pay the price. 

• Climate Impacts: Data centres use vast amounts of energy world-wide. While some are powered by renewables, most are not. Often, the data centres can be built much faster than the renewable energy required to power them, so they opt for using existing fossil-fuel-based power instead. They need to have backup power generation to guarantee their uptime, for which they often use diesel generators, with its associated health impacts from pollution. 

• Public Participation: There has not been any meaningful public participation on the issue of hyper-scale data centres development as is our right under the constitution. Splitting projects to hide the full impacts, planning tribunal irregularities and failure to provide essential information makes it almost impossible for communities to engage on issues that affect them directly. 

• Public subsidies and tax breaks: What is our government doing to ensure that the data centre projects benefit our economy? Will these companies be paying tax in South Africa? What incentives are they getting to invest in South Africa? 

• Job creation claims: Data centre developers often claim that many new jobs will be created, which makes them very attractive to any government that is trying to reduce unemployment. These claims need to be verified. We need to know exactly how many long- and short-term jobs will be created, and if local people will be prioritised. 

• Raw mineral extraction, rare earth metals, increased mining activities: Data centre hardware and the computer chips they run on require new materials to be mined. The whole infrastructure chain has to be included when assessing the environmental cost of data centre developments. The mining of metals required for AI chip production is often accompanied by violations of human rights through underpaid, forced, or child labor under dangerous working conditions, as well as destruction of the environment. 

• Management of electronic waste: Data centre servers need to be replaced every few years, resulting in huge amounts of e-waste. We need updated and strict regulations on how this waste will be managed, There needs to be regulations relating to recycling the minerals and disposing of the hazardous materials in the servers. 

• Land use: Hyper-scale data centres use a significant amount of land. Development should not come at the expense of the constitutional rights of communities to adequate housing. We must determine if the land could rather be used for housing, for growing food, or for other purposes.

• Noise pollution: Data centres run all the time, and the noise generated by cooling systems and other equipment emit a continuous humming, whirring, droning sound. This causes disturbance, sleep- and health issues for anyone living and working near such a facility. When diesel backup generators kick in, the noise is much worse. Data centres will often be situated near the poorest communities who are already subjected to excessive noise and air pollution.

• Water pollution: While closed-loop water cooling systems are more water-efficient than open-loop systems, they are not water-free. To prevent corrosion, scale, and biological growth, the water is treated with chemical additives like inhibitors, biocides, and antifreeze. To maintain efficiency, a portion of this concentrated water, known as “blow-down,” must be discharged. This wastewater can contain concentrations of nitrites, glycol, and heavy metals at levels thousands of times higher than surface water standards. If not properly treated, this blow-down water can contaminate local wastewater systems, and accidental leaks or spills can harm surrounding ecosystems.

• Greenwashing: Data centres often claim all sorts of green credentials. If they claim to run on 100% renewable energy, for example, all these claims need to be verified. 

More information and detailed research: 

https://www.foxglove.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/2026_08_-20-PUB-Foxglove-SAHRC-Data-Centre-Submission-V265.pdf