The Dark Side of Digital Progress: Can We Afford Our Datacentre Addiction?

The East Havering Data Centre Campus (EHDCC) in North Ockendon, London has sparked outrage over its projected carbon footprint of 1 million tonnes per year. This massive datacentre is one of the largest in Europe and serves as a stark reminder that our addiction to digital progress comes with a steep environmental price tag.

Proponents claim that this £14.7bn project will create a “sustainable datacentre campus of the future,” but the numbers tell a different story. The EHDCC would generate more than 72 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent over its projected 60-year lifespan, consuming an estimated 2.65 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year – enough to power over a million UK households.

The expansion of Britain’s datacentre infrastructure is accelerating rapidly. In 2024, the government designated them as “critical national infrastructure,” and by 2030, they’re expected to use four times more electricity than today. According to Donald Campbell, advocacy director at Foxglove, this growth has a huge social and environmental cost: “It’s a big threat to the ability to decarbonise in the UK.”

The irony is not lost on observers. At a time when climate action should be our top priority, our datacentre addiction is pushing us further away from net zero targets. The government’s failure to publish a national policy statement for the sector has left a void that developers are eager to fill – at what cost?

The scale of emissions from the EHDCC is staggering: by 2038, its operational emissions alone would consume nearly 20 times the entire carbon budget of the borough of Havering. This raises fundamental questions about our priorities as a society. Are we willing to sacrifice green spaces, wildlife habitats, and precious resources for the sake of progress? The answer seems to be yes – at least in theory.

The £77.6m cash-in-lieu contribution proposed by Digital Reef is a Band-Aid solution that does little to address the issue. As Campbell notes, “They shouldn’t just plug into the grid and drain the power that everyone else needs.” It’s time for developers to take responsibility for their impact and build renewable generation and storage on site – anything less would be a cop-out.

The EHDCC saga serves as a stark warning: our addiction to digital progress is threatening to derail our climate ambitions. As we hurtle towards 2030, the UK government must take concrete steps to address this issue. That means setting clear standards for datacentre developers and enforcing them through policy and regulation. Anything less would be a dereliction of duty.

The consultation process is ongoing, but policymakers must wake up to the reality of our datacentre addiction. As we navigate the complexities of a rapidly changing world, one thing is certain: progress must come with a price tag – and that price can no longer be paid by our planet.