City of Greater Geelong CEO Ali Wastie, is calling for a new levy on AI data centres to support local community benefit funds.
The proposed annual levy would apply for the lifetime of the data centre, with the funds quarantined for vital infrastructure in surrounding communities, such as sporting grounds, community arts centres and other much-needed community infrastructure.
Ms Wastie said data centres have failed so far to convince people that they will have enduring benefits for the communities they will impact.
"We need to find a pathway forward through this debate because, in the end, we are going to need data centres," Ms Wastie said.
"The State Government is fast-tracking many new data centres and local communities are rightfully upset at being ignored and they are focusing on the potential negative impacts of data centres such as their huge use of electricity and water, as well as their noise and size. This is not only a Victorian or Australian debate. It is happening around the world."
"We understand how those communities feel because the current practice is also bypassing council planning processes with data centres. The City of Greater Geelong encourages data centres in our region to deliver the artificial intelligence that will power the future economy, but they must be in the right industrial areas to minimise the impact on communities and they must contribute to the communities that will host them."
Ms Wastie said what had been missing from the debate was how data centre developers would deliver lasting benefits to the communities hosting them.
"Communities are asking a simple question: data centres will generate enormous value for big tech companies, but what's in it for us?"
Unlike a new factory or office, data centres create relatively few ongoing jobs once construction is finished, but their impact on local communities, water and electricity can last for decades," she said.
Ms Wastie is calling for a national levy on new data centres so the communities that host them receive a lasting benefit from the infrastructure in their backyard.
"The concept of contributing to local community benefit funds is already established for big new renewable energy projects, and national legislation would ensure consistency."
"Communities want to be part of the discussion about a project that will impact their lives and they want a fair go."
