March 23, 2022
Some members of the Dutch Senate have urged the government to temporarily block the construction of Meta’s planned data centre in the town of Zeewolde.
The lawmakers’ proposal asked the government to pause the project until it has been confirmed that the data centre can meet environmental regulations.
They also demanded that the project be paused until a national policy on data centres has been developed.
The construction of Meta’s data center has been opposed for environmental reasons. However, some arguments claimed the move from some Dutch senate members is rather politically motivated.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and another ruling coalition party, the Christian Democrats, voted against the motion.
Dutch Data Center Association managing director, Stijn Grove stated that the demand is a “purely political decision.”
For Grove, larger data centres are more efficient and environmentally friendly. He noted that they are needed to improve Europe’s digital infrastructure.
For more information, read the original story in Reuters.
