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.<\/p>\n
The lawmakers’ proposal asked the government to pause the project until it has been confirmed that the data centre can meet environmental regulations.<\/p>\n
They also demanded that the project be paused until a national policy on data centres has been developed.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and another ruling coalition party, the Christian Democrats, voted against the motion.<\/p>\n
Dutch Data Center Association managing director, Stijn Grove stated that the demand is a “purely political decision.”<\/p>\n
For Grove, larger data centres are more efficient and environmentally friendly. He noted that they are needed to improve Europe’s digital infrastructure.<\/p>\n