IRELAND\u2019S INDUSTRY GROUP for data centres has lashed out at writer Sally Rooney for her opposition to the sector\u2019s expansion, calling her a \u201chypocrite\u201d for her use of print publishing.<\/p>\n
The best-selling author was a prominent objector to a data centre in Killala, Co Mayo, which planning authorities eventually rejected, although on grounds related to a separate objector\u2019s appeal.<\/p>\n
In her submission on the Mayo proposal, Rooney called the data centres a \u201cdisaster\u201d for their \u201cwasteful consumption of electricity\u201d, as she argued that some estimates suggest online ads that rely on data centres account for between 50% and 80% of internet data usage.<\/p>\n
This stance has raised the ire of Digital Infrastructure Ireland chief executive Ronan Kelly, who has launched a broadside against Rooney over her opposition to data centres.<\/p>\n
Kelly further branded Rooney a \u201chypocrite\u201d as he claimed she doesn\u2019t factor in the carbon emissions from using the printed word for her books.<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw Sally Rooney quoted in a piece, that data centres were pointless for creating advertising and not a good use of electricity. That\u2019s got my back up a little bit,\u201d Kelly told The Journal in an interview about the sector\u2019s future in Ireland amid mounting opposition.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere\u2019s someone using their somewhat celebrity status to throw criticism at this sector,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n
After researching Rooney\u2019s publishing figures, Kelly said he set about calculating the potential emissions from publishing the likes of Normal People.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Sally Rooney has published six and a half million books \u2013 that\u2019s quite a lot of books, well done \u2013 but that\u2019s about 15,000 tonnes of emissions,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I wonder does Sally make use of e-books at all,\u201d Kelly said, arguing that if Rooney had published entirely on e-books then the carbon emission impact of her award-winning career would have been \u201conly roughly 1,000 tonnes\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s hypocritical of her when she also distributes her product through data centres,\u201d he said, referring to sales over e-books such as Kindle.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo yes, she got my back up and I honed in on her but it\u2019s just one example of digitalisation,\u201d Kelly added.\n<\/p>\n
How many shells of VHS cassettes and other products slowly but surely made their way into a landfill with a massive environmental impact? And data centres can help digitalise these products and lessen their carbon impact.<\/p>\n
Kelly said he accepted that there are concerns around electricity use at data centres, but claimed this was mainly due to Ireland\u2019s\u00a0electrical grid needing huge upgrades.<\/p>\n
He added that many of Ireland\u2019s data centres are \u201cnot fit for purpose for competing in the AI world\u201d, but that \u201cunderinvestment has meant pinch-points\u201d within the grid.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat prevents us from adding any more cloud-based data centres and that\u2019s the stuff that you\u2019re seeing being turned down at the moment,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n
Is Ronan Kelly right to use that comparison?<\/p>\n
We asked University College Cork climate lecturer Paul Deane whether Kelly is correct to use such a comparison between printed books and e-books. In response, Deane said it would be hard to calculate and it would be open to many variables.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not a straightforward thing doing the numbers of this,\u201d Deane said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, books come from trees, but what is in production lifecycle of a Kindle? And books stay in circulation for a long time and can be sold a second time, and on again. And then we have to look at where are data centres operated? Like, Ireland has a very polluting power system compared to the rest of Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sally Rooney\u2019s publisher was contacted for comment and did not respond in time for publication.<\/p>\n
In her six-page submission on the now rejected data centre, Rooney had also said that, \u201cnot only would this proposed data centre represent a wasteful use of precious and limited electricity; it could also endanger that vital resource for other users, including hospitals and homes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rooney was one of a number of objectors to the Co Mayo data centre, with the plans eventually being halted after an appeal by retired scientist Colin Doyle.<\/p>\n