Finland Licensing and Supervision Authority ordered Google’s Finnish subsidiary on 6 October to stop environmentally significant work at two datacentre sites until impact assessments are done. By then, an estimated 250,000 trees had been cleared across 330 hectares at Muhos, and campaigners say another 150,000 were felled at Otanmäki. The sites belong to a €13 billion project that Google announced in September as its largest single investment in Europe.
Finland Sold Itself as the Ideal Host
Finland had been marketing its cold climate, clean power and spare grid capacity to exactly this kind of builder. Impakter counted about 145 datacentre projects at various stages of planning. In September, Google announced a €13 billion programme, with new datacentres in Muhos, Kajaani and Vaala and an expansion in Hamina.
Hamina is the showcase, where Google’s datacentre sends waste heat to local homes and businesses. Google estimates that heat recovery will cover up to 80 per cent of the district heating network’s annual demand. Critics argue the new projects create few jobs and direct little tax to Finland, Traders Union reported.
The Forest Went Before the Review
On 6 October, the regulator told Google’s subsidiary Tuike Finland to stop work at Muhos and Kajaani until environmental assessments are finished. By then it had removed trees, stripped topsoil, built roads and changed drainage, the regulator said. At Muhos an estimated 250,000 trees were cleared, and Otanmäki lies near Kajaani. Google says it believed it was acting lawfully, and its Finland country manager apologised for falling short of its own standards.
An environmental assessment exists to collect information before decisions are made, explainx noted, so clearing first reverses the order. Google plans to plant trees across 130 hectares at Muhos, but conservationists say new trees do not replace a full-grown forest. Police are reviewing the Muhos case, explainx reported.
Finns Demand a Price for AI Growth
More than 96,000 people have signed a citizens’ initiative that asks for a datacentre fee matching the environmental damage and resources used. It also asks lawmakers to protect electricity supply and prices, and it passed nearly twice the 50,000 signatures needed to force a parliamentary debate. Critics also ask why Finland’s renewable energy is being used to power international corporations, CleanTechnica reported.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo called what happened in Muhos a “cold shower”. The petition asks for rules and fees, not for datacentres to leave, so Finns want a price before the next clearing. A country that sells its forests, cold air and clean power to AI builders should price them before the chainsaws arrive.
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