Ontario Premier Doug Ford unveiled the province’s fresh data center framework on Thursday, emphasizing the importance of keeping Canadians’ data within Canada. The framework is built on three core principles: promoting economic growth, safeguarding data, sovereignty, and investing in communities to enhance public trust.
During the announcement in Guelph, Ford highlighted that the new data center playbook aims to boost economic growth, increase tax revenues, and create numerous job opportunities, all while ensuring compliance with regulations. The framework mandates that data centers cover the full cost of their electricity usage, encouraging them to develop their own power sources and imposing a higher rate class for large new data centers to prevent passing costs on to Ontario families.
Moreover, the province clarified that it will not provide financial incentives to attract investments, emphasizing that the framework will play a crucial role in supporting its artificial intelligence (AI) strategy. The AI strategy is anticipated to bring about substantial economic growth, generating $122 billion by 2035 and fostering the creation of 17,000 new jobs annually.
The announcement coincides with ongoing discussions in municipalities across the province regarding moratoriums on data centers. Oakville recently enacted a one-year moratorium, and Mississauga is set to vote on a similar measure in September.
Green Party of Ontario leader Mike Schreiner recently urged for a halt on new data centers, expressing concerns about corporations benefiting from local resources at the expense of Ontario communities. He emphasized the physical infrastructure requirements of data centers, including land, energy, and substantial water consumption.
In response to these concerns, Ontario’s minister of economic development, Vic Fedeli, assured that priority would be given to data centers utilizing closed-loop systems to minimize water consumption. Ford echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the prioritization of builds with closed-loop systems to minimize water usage during operations.
While acknowledging the importance of data protection and the growing role of data centers in the future, Schreiner and the Ontario Greens are advocating for stronger regulations to protect communities from potential negative impacts. They are advocating for a moratorium until robust regulations are in place to safeguard communities from data center-related issues.
In related developments, Coun. Colleen James in the Waterloo region tabled a motion to prepare an information report for the Region of Waterloo council to better understand the development, economic, and environmental impacts of data centers. The report is expected to be completed early next year to address concerns and inform decision-making processes.