2026-11-06
In the wake of the US midterm elections, voter backlash against data centres reinforces the Greens’ urgent call for a moratorium on new data centre approvals.
With hundreds of data centres already in the pipeline or being built here in Australia, the Greens have pointed to growing community concern and urge the Government to put a moratorium in place until there is robust regulation that puts the community first.
Quotes attributable to Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, Greens environment and communications spokesperson:
“If the Albanese Government takes any message from the US midterms this week: it should be that we need a pause on the AI data centre rush.
“The Government should heed the warning from the United States and put in place an immediate moratorium on data centre approvals.
“From Texas, to Michigan, to Ohio, American voters strongly rejected data centres and proved that the social licence of these big AI, tech bro led companies is down the drain.
“Here in Australia, we have become the new wild west for the US data centre operators because America has seen the writing on the wall and our regulations here at home are not up to scratch.
“We need a moratorium now until we get the settings right.
“The sentiment that data centres are an ‘automatic good’ has been proven wrong, and communities are mobilising against these centres and their impacts on our water, energy, land and communities.
“People all over Australia are telling our government that we don't want these massive, US based AI mining companies setting up shop in our suburbs.
“Australians are clear: we say no to building data centres near people's homes, schools, hospitals, workplaces, or on prime agricultural land, especially whilst they leave us with higher living costs, mortgages, less jobs, and more pollution.”