Politicians in Scotland are calling for a temporary national ban on new AI data centers.

The Scottish National Party (SNP), the largest party in the Scottish Parliament, will now back a temporary moratorium as concerns over the environmental impact of large-scale data center developments grow.

According to The National, the party’s national council, a key decision-making body in the SNP, voted this week to support a moratorium.

An SNP spokesperson said: “AI data centers are evolving at pace, and the SNP fully recognizes the concerns about the environmental impact and the impact on energy resources of hyperscale data centers.

“The Scottish government is currently reviewing what action can be taken to help balance the rapid expansion of such centers with our national energy and climate goals – including a potential pause on applications.”

The Scottish Green Party had already demanded a moratorium, and between them the two parties hold a clear majority in the Scottish Parliament, meaning any legislation that comes forward is likely to pass, especially given that lawmakers from other parties have also expressed concerns about data centers.

Scotland does not have a large data center market, but the AI boom has led to a host of developers bringing forward new projects.

These include a 300MW data center planned outside Falkirk, and a 600MW site in Fife. Meanwhile, North Lanarkshire has been designated an AI Growth Zone by the UK government, a move that could unlock a 500MW expansion of a data center campus owned by DataVita.

According to the Scottish Green Party, 24 hyperscale data centers have been proposed across Scotland. If all were approved and built out to full planned capacity, they could consume up to one and a half times Scotland’s peak electricity demand, “putting huge pressure on the grid, renewable energy supplies, water resources and climate targets.”

Scottish Green MSP Patrick Harvie said: “This is an important step by the SNP’s national council, and I hope the Scottish government now acts on it.

“I know there are SNP MSPs who share our concerns about the Big Tech land grab we are seeing and who have backed our calls since we first raised this issue in Parliament.

“Scotland is facing a wave of hyperscale data center applications that could have profound consequences for our energy system, our environment and our communities.”

A national moratorium on data centers has been in place in Singapore for several years, though it is now being eased by the city-state’s government. Local-level moratoriums have been imposed in key European markets in Amsterdam and Dublin, while such measures are becoming commonplace across US townships.

Any moratorium in Scotland would put the nation’s government in direct opposition to the UK government in Westminster, which is actively encouraging new data center projects to help drive economic growth.