Chile Takes A Step Back From Granting Full Permission To Google Over Data Center

An environmental court in Chile has partially stopped Google's permit from building a data center in the country, urging the tech giant to revise its application and consider climate change impact.

The Chilean government gave a green signal for its announced $200 million Cerrillos Data Center in Santiago back in 2020. However, the data center faced opposition from residents and local officials due to concerns about its potential impact on the capital's water supply.

The locals raised an objection, as Chile has been going through drought for more than 10 years and the construction of a data server will require millions of water gallons.

Keeping this in mind, the court has directed Google "to incorporate the consideration of climate change's effects in the evaluation of the water component (Central Santiago Aquifer), if appropriate, taking into account a possible modification of the cooling system of the servers associated with the project," as per Reuters.

Google's spokesperson said after the court ruling that the tech giant will "continue to collaborate with the requirements of local authorities," noting that two years ago Google had already submitted a change in the original plan.

Climate change is a global issue, as many countries are working towards curbing the impact of the ongoing climate change crisis.

Chile's National Forestry Corporation last year, in November, permanently banned hikers from visiting Patagonia's popular glacier called Exploradores (or the Explorers), located in Laguna San Rafael National Park.

Following a study by government hydrologists, the decision was made to shut down the hiking activities, as the glacier was reaching an "inflection point," deemed dangerous and unstable.

Though the glacier has been shut for hiking, people can still visit the national park, which remains open and has been welcoming at least 20,000 visitors every year, and one can enjoy the view of the glacier from a boat.

Following this decision, Chilean President Gabriel Boric and the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, visited Antarctica to observe the climate change impact on the continent.