Mattie McGrath: Data centres threaten Ireland's energy and water
Mattie McGrath addresses the Dáil warning that the rapid growth of data centres is running ahead of Ireland's energy and water capacity. He criticises the Shannon Pipeline proposal, the use of prime land for solar, and the long delay to Wind Energy Guidelines, and calls for more balanced regional development and timely home retrofit support.
Mattie McGrath says international warning signs, including from the United Nations, show data centre expansion is outstripping energy and water infrastructure. He stresses that he is not opposed to development, but objects to the scale of electricity and water demand being created.
McGrath singles out the Shannon Pipeline as a project moving forward without proper planning or environmental licences, warning it risks economic damage to the Midwest and likening it to a "runaway train." He argues the pipeline would divert large volumes of water to Dublin while local aquifers remain underused.
He notes the stalled Wind Energy Guidelines and the rapid take-up of prime agricultural land for solar, criticising broken promises from previous election cycles and urging better policy balance between renewables and food production.
McGrath highlights the human cost: rising energy bills and families unable to finance retrofits. He calls for timely home support schemes so households can make savings on energy and for policy that spreads development more evenly across regions.
Data centres and national capacity
Mattie McGrath says international warning signs, including from the United Nations, show data centre expansion is outstripping energy and water infrastructure. He stresses that he is not opposed to development, but objects to the scale of electricity and water demand being created.
Shannon Pipeline and regional impact
McGrath singles out the Shannon Pipeline as a project moving forward without proper planning or environmental licences, warning it risks economic damage to the Midwest and likening it to a "runaway train." He argues the pipeline would divert large volumes of water to Dublin while local aquifers remain underused.
Renewables, land use and policy delays
He notes the stalled Wind Energy Guidelines and the rapid take-up of prime agricultural land for solar, criticising broken promises from previous election cycles and urging better policy balance between renewables and food production.
Households and retrofit schemes
McGrath highlights the human cost: rising energy bills and families unable to finance retrofits. He calls for timely home support schemes so households can make savings on energy and for policy that spreads development more evenly across regions.
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Transcript
I too am glad to be able to speak to this motion today, and Minister, I know you're walking a tightrope, it's very difficult to get the proper balance, but the Wind Energy Guidelines are definitely 21 years now, and Fine Gael promised two elections ago that it would happen in 12 months, and it counts as a loss. Same with the whole solar situation, the best land in the country has been taken over by solar. But the data centres, as we know, the United Nations now, whom I don't pay a lot of attention to often, but they're even issuing a cautionary tale to us here in Ireland for allowing data centres to grow, to run far ahead of our energy and water capacity. When the UN is warning us, something must be amiss. So we need to cut our clot according to measure. I'm not opposed to data centres per se, or any development, I totally am not, but I am against what's going on here with the huge amount of electricity they're using, and the huge need they have to have water for cooling their systems and everything else. We see the Shannon Pipeline, which is proposed, and it's like a runaway train. It'll be the second children's hospital to bring water to Dublin, when they have plenty of aquifers, and plenty of water in the vicinity of Dublin, without having that mad project, and as I call it madness, and going to do huge economic damage to the Midwest region. Also, that's gone off without planning, and without any licence from the EPA or anybody else, and they have spent a fortune compensating farmers, paying them 25% up front. So have they some Irish water, and some inner contact line that they get the nod they can go ahead and do this, to help with the planning, to help with anything else, we can do this, and we're going to start spending money. They're out of control completely, but the data centres, as I said, when people are trying to heat their homes, and the cost of living is driven up, and these are having an enormous impact, and they're mostly in the capital city, which is pushing at the seams. We need more balanced regional development, but we also need, and several speakers referred to it during the motion, regarding the whole home support schemes, for all the families to try and make savings on their energy, do something as we call it for this climate, and have retrofits made in a timely fashion, that they can avail of them, and no families have 45 grand in their back pocket that they can get out to pay for these retrofits, so there's a lot to do, and also have balancing act, and you're doing your best, but it has to be a better balance, and we have to listen to what people like the United Nations tell us, that capacity is all wrong here, and we're too many eggs in one basket, and we must try and redress that, and have more balanced regional development as well.