Essex County council is set to discuss preliminary steps towards developing a municipal framework for AI data centres. A motion set to be debated on Wednesday evening would evaluate what types of land zoning and policies could be vulnerable to data centres. It comes as municipalities across Canada see growing opposition to the centres needed to help power artificial intelligence technology. Sherry Bondy, the Mayor of the Town of Essex, told CTV News county councillors have received close to 150 emails from residents on the topic. While she says her municipality hasn’t received any applications, the hope is to be proactive about any that may come in the county. “Looking at it from a county perspective makes a lot more sense because we have to see where are they coming in Essex County, because we all live, work, and play here in Essex County,” Bondy said in an interview. Concerns have largely surrounded the use of resources such as water and energy. The motion was brought forward by Kimberly DeYong, Kingsville’s deputy mayor, following talks at a Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference. If approved, staff would bring a report on AI data centres, including plans for consultations with the public, and information on whether additional planning tools are necessary. As part of the matter, Bondy said they’re hoping to gain more information about requirements, and whether the county has seen any proposals. “We don’t have a lot of information here about their requirements, has anybody been approached, so I can see that residents are concerned because we haven’t been able to discuss any local data on it,” she noted. At the municipal level, Bondy said they may have to look at zoning bylaws to prohibit data centres. “We really need to do our homework too, because that could prohibit other operations that we may want. So, it’s really something that we need to all do our research on to make sure that we’re not eliminating good jobs as well,” she said. Bondy recognized there have been a lot of public concerns, with some residents who incorrectly believe council has supported or approved data centres. “Some emails are kind of the premature thinking that we’re all in support because I don’t think county council is going to be all in support,” she said. Also on council’s agenda is a letter from the Town of Amherstburg which asks the county to review land use policies related to data centres, and asks council to consider retaining external expertise to help conduct the review. The full motion can be found here. Essex County Council will meet at 6 pm on Aug. 5 to debate the matter.
