I used to live in a quiet area - now a data centre overlooks my garden
Residents in Newport, Wales, are expressing concerns over the rapid expansion of data centers in their neighborhood, citing noise, visual pollution, and potential impacts on property values. As AI demand drives the need for more processing power, the UK government has classified these facilities as critical national infrastructure, sparking a debate over local community rights versus national digital needs.
Why it matters
It highlights the growing tension between the physical infrastructure requirements of the AI boom and the quality-of-life concerns of local communities.
Image caption, Amanda says she can see the data centre from whichever window of her home she looks out of
Overlooking the garden of Amanda Young's family home is a data centre.
"It used to be a nice, quiet area," said Amanda, who lives near to one of the large buildings in Newport.
"But with more data centres coming in, we kind of don't know what they're going to bring with them."
Data centres are buildings full of powerful computers used to run digital services, from online banking to movie streaming.
The number of data centres across the UK is on the rise as the growth in artificial intelligence (AI) increases the need for processing power.
The UK government classifies data centres as critical national infrastructure and, according to recent Senedd research, "most jobs in the UK" are now reliant on them.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in