Just over a month after imposing a moratorium on construction of huge AI data centres in Mississauga, city officials are poised to discuss the issue at length once again on Wednesday.
A report from senior City of Mississauga staff outlining the Ontario government’s latest “playbook” for the building of such large facilities across the province will be tabled at the city’s general committee meeting tomorrow morning.
Two deputations are also scheduled to speak on the matter of AI data centre construction, which has become a controversial issue not only in Mississauga and throughout Ontario, but across the country and in the U.S. as well.
In his report, Mississauga’s Planning and Building Commissioner Andrew Whittemore notes the provincial government on Aug. 13 released additional details on its data centre strategy in a document dubbed “Playbook for New Data Centres.”
Council approves one-year moratorium
Two weeks earlier, city councillors unanimously agreed to impose a moratorium of one year — and up to two years — on data centre developments in Mississauga to allow the city more time to study the matter and any new rules that would regulate the rapidly growing industry.
Council’s decision followed some two dozen deputations from residents and other stakeholders at the July 29 city council meeting, the vast majority of whom spoke against the large new facilities.
The province’s data centre “playbook,” Whittemore said in his report, “is very high level with the most notable items being a proposed new (higher) electrical rate class for data centres and a more centralized provincial approval process.”
He added “significant regulatory and legislative changes would be needed to implement elements” of the strategy.
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Staff’s position, the commissioner noted, is that while they “continue to support provincial efforts to regulate the development of data centres and are generally supportive of the proposed regulations, further details on the implications to municipal planning application and approval processes are needed and several areas of concern need to be addressed.”
More information on data centres to come in the fall
To that end, the report continued, city staff will forward comments and concerns to the provincial government by Sept. 12.
Staff said another report will be prepared in the fall as the city gathers more information about the path forward with respect to the large data centres.
Discussion at the July 29 city council meeting was prompted by a motion from Ward 9 Coun. Martin Reid that sought to temporarily halt the development of major data centres in Mississauga.
The motion called for an Interim Control Bylaw that would prohibit new large-scale digital infrastructure facilities — including artificial intelligence, cloud computing and hyperscale data centres — for up to one year while the city undertakes a comprehensive planning study.
Pause is citywide
The temporary pause agreed to by council applies citywide and can be extended to a second year if additional time is needed to complete the review.
Mayor Carolyn Parrish said post-vote that residents’ fear of the unknown as it relates to huge data centres and their impact is understandable.
“We don’t know what data centres” are going to bring to Mississauga, and other communities, she said at the time.
The July 29 discussion, which took up most of the day inside council chamber at city hall, came after months of growing concern among residents over a proposed Prologis data centre in Meadowvale.
Nearby homeowners have raised questions about electricity demand, water consumption, noise, greenhouse gas emissions, traffic, emergency preparedness and the relatively small number of permanent jobs created by such facilities.
Mississauga Ward 9 Coun. Martin Reid tabled motion to pause development of data centres in the city.
“Council recognizes the economic opportunities associated with digital infrastructure while recognizing the need for a comprehensive municipal framework before permitting additional large-scale facilities,” Reid’s motion stated.
The proposal also noted that while data centres are becoming increasingly important to Canada’s economy, artificial intelligence development, cybersecurity and national security, Ontario has yet to establish a planning or regulatory framework specifically for AI data centres and other large digital infrastructure.
City staff will review planning policies and zoning rules
Moving forward, city staff will review Mississauga’s planning policies, zoning rules and development approval process for data centres while consulting with utilities, Peel Region, Indigenous communities, industry representatives, environmental experts, academic institutions, residents and community organizations.
The review will also examine electricity and water use, wastewater servicing, noise, emissions, taxation, employment impacts, public health, climate considerations and infrastructure capacity.
City staff will explore whether developers could provide voluntary community benefits such as new parks, recreation facilities or public art as part of future data centre projects.
The city will also study possible regulations governing operational impacts such as noise, energy use, water consumption, heat generation and emissions, along with opportunities for greater public reporting on environmental performance where legally permitted.
Data centres are critical infrastructure
Proponents say data centres have become critical infrastructure as more of everyday life moves online.
Everything from streaming services, online banking and Google Maps to cloud computing and artificial intelligence depends on data centres to store, process and move enormous amounts of digital information.
The rapid growth of AI has dramatically increased demand for new facilities capable of handling advanced computing workloads.
Despite their growing importance, data centres have also become increasingly controversial in communities across Ontario — and far beyond.
Residents near the proposed Prologis facility on Tenth Line West in Meadowvale have questioned the amount of electricity and water needed to operate the building, the potential for noise from cooling equipment and backup generators, greenhouse gas emissions, and whether the facilities generate enough permanent jobs to justify their demands on public infrastructure.
More than 200 residents attend town hall meeting
At a packed town hall hosted by Reid in June, more than 200 residents attended to question company officials and city planners about the proposal.
Prologis has said its proposed facility would use a closed-loop cooling system designed to minimize water consumption and that the company would pay for all electrical infrastructure upgrades required to serve the site.
The company has estimated the project would create approximately 790 construction jobs annually during development, about 75 permanent jobs once operational and more than $1.6 million annually in municipal property taxes.
— with files from Steve Pecar and Karen Longwell
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