The council states that this pause will allow the town to examine noise, emissions, infrastructure, and land-use effects of energy-heavy facilities.
Oakville’s council has decided to put a one-year hold on data centre development, giving town staff the chance to review policies concerning the possible impacts of these controversial facilities.
The interim control bylaw, officially approved during a special council meeting on Aug. 11, pertains to data centres, enterprise computing facilities, and similar high-demand processing operations.
This break will enable staff to investigate matters such as noise levels, electricity requirements, and land use compatibility that often arise in discussions about computing infrastructure sites.
Ward 6 councillor Tom Adams brought forth the motion, mentioning “growing concerns” regarding large-scale data centres and the need for a better understanding of how these complex and energy-intensive projects could affect land use.
“Further study is not only appropriate, it’s responsible,” Adams said.
“Oakville deserves clear, evidence-based understanding of how data centres interact with our electricity, our water, our wastewater, our telecommunications infrastructure, our environmental goals, our employment lands, the character of our neighbourhoods, and most importantly, the health of our residents, including impacts from noise, vibrations and other air emissions,” he said.
This action follows reports that a 320 MW artificial intelligence data centre might be developed on a 25-acre site at 3480 Ninth Line in Ward 6.
Canadian-based HIVE BUZZ HPC acquired the property from the Bucci family on May 15 for $12 million.
A few days later, they announced intentions to build an industrial-scale AI infrastructure facility-also referred to as a gigafactory-somewhere in the Greater Toronto Area between Waterloo and Toronto. That announcement indicated plans to have the $3.5 billion facility operational by late 2027.
The company has not yet replied to inquiries about its plans for the Oakville site.
Although Oakville hasn’t received an official development proposal yet, town staff mentioned they’ve “participated in pre-consultation discussions that indicate potential market interest in Oakville.”
The moratorium doesn’t specifically target the Ninth Line property but will apply broadly across new data centre developments in Oakville.
Fellow Ward 6 councillor Natalia Lishchyna supported Adam’s motion as well; she emphasized that decisions should be based on solid evidence.
“Taking the time to study these issues is not about prejudging the outcome or saying no to innovation,” she said. “It is about making sure we have the facts before us and the appropriate policies in place before making decisions that could have long-term consequences.”
Ward 1 councillor Sean O’Meara backed the one-year hold but warned against ignoring potential advantages of having data infrastructure within Canada.
“Either we figure out how we’re going to control our own information and our own privacy and our children’s privacy or other countries are going to control it,” he stated. “So we have to be very careful about what we’re trying to do.”
Ward 5 councillor Jeff Knoll urged town staff to collaborate with other municipalities facing similar challenges regarding facility development.
A report from town staff shared with councillors at their Aug. 10 meeting outlines basic parameters related to data centre developments.
Oakville joins several other municipalities facing difficulties with these controversial centers’ growth.
While Mississauga’s councillors recently voted for a one-year moratorium on new data centres, both Burlington and Hamilton councils turned down such measures.
(2092)
Mayor Rob Burton commented that while implementing this moratorium could face some challenges. “It is a fact that an interim control bylaw can be appealed so it may very well happen that we will be tested,” he said.
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While Mississauga’s councillors recently voted for a one-year moratorium on new data centres, both Burlington and Hamilton councils turned down such measures.
(2092)
Mayor Rob Burton commented that while implementing this moratorium could face some challenges. “It is a fact that an interim control bylaw can be appealed so it may very well happen that we will be tested,” he said.
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