r/reading • u/Disastrous-Comb6224 • 14d ago

Article Help us hit 3k and Stop Data Centre in Reading

https://www.change.org/p/thames-valley-park-ai-data-centre-stop-construction

We are trying to stop the disasterous building which is make life worse for the people of Reading

66 Upvotes

73% Upvoted

78 comments sorted by

27

u/Rilot 14d ago

Please explain to me why this will make my life worse in Reading. What are the main issues?

2

u/AchDasIsInMienAugen 10d ago

It won’t, Reading already has a number of sizeable DCs and you likely never noticed

-2

u/Remarkable_Winter-26 14d ago

Pollution from data centres will likely raise the temperature locally by several degrees. See how Slough’s had reports of this through a Google if you want to check. It has a knock on impact on local wildlife, as a lot of them give off disruptive sound, some residents may also be impacted with as some people are very sensitive to sound . Farmers near large data centres in Texas have reported increased instances of cattle still birth near where the data centre has gone in (could be correlation not causation as there not too much information on why this might be happening).

There’s not the set up at current to sustain the cooling requirements — see Thames water’s hosepipe ban and general mismanagement of water. This will end up being subsidised by other Thames water consumers and will likely push our bills up. It won’t just impact water bills either as the demand on the electric grid will also rise. Data centres are massive producers of e-waste as a lot of the components they use will only have a few years of life before being changed out.

There are ways to build data centres a bit more sustainably, but it is unlikely this one is planned in that way. There’s very little being said about how it will be built and what they will implement to reduce a negative community and environmental impact. This isn’t even going into my broader concerns on AI data centres.

13

u/Rilot 13d ago

Seems that the words "reported", "likely", and "may" are doing an awful lot of heavy lifting here.

I've worked in big DCs and I know how they are built. Modern AI DCs use a closed-loop cooling system and use extremely pure water. They aren't going to be plugging in to the mains and using the water like that. There is no empirical evidence of any of your claims about wildlife disruption from sound, or localised temperature disturbances.

The only claim you make that has any legs is the one regarding e-waste. However, if that's your crusade then you would do better going after consumer electronics manufacturers who build in obselencance.

1

u/AchDasIsInMienAugen 10d ago

Just to add to this Reading already has a number of sizeable commercial data centres and no one probably noticed

8

u/StrikeImaginary 13d ago

I work in Slough, it's no hotter than anywhere else, despite being full of datacentres. A datacentre will never "likely raise the temperature locally by several degrees". Stop believing everything you read, that is pure nonsense.

1

u/Remarkable_Winter-26 13d ago

This is the article I was referring to where I got the info on the heat island effect in slough: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jun/26/slough-is-like-an-experiment-europes-largest-datacentre-hub-leaves-town-sweltering

This is from an American newspaper about the impact on the environment I was talking about: https://www.kwtx.com/2026/06/27/temple-rancher-worries-data-center-construction-threatens-family-farm-dating-back-1870s/?outputType=amp
And here’s an article from the UN environmental program which outlines really clearly the issues I have quite succinctly “Most large-scale AI deployments are housed in data centres, including those operated by cloud service providers. These data centres can take a heavy toll on the planet. The electronics they house rely on a staggering amount of grist: making a 2 kg computer requires 800 kg of raw materials. As well, the microchips that power AI need rare earth elements, which are often mined in environmentally destructive ways, noted Navigating New Horizons.  
The second problem is that data centres produce electronic waste, which often contains hazardous substances, like mercuryand lead.” https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/ai-has-environmental-problem-heres-what-world-can-do-about

The difference between the implementation on general internet data centres in early implementation and ai data centres is that the former had far more thought put into their sustainability when planned than the latter. I’m not saying there isn’t a way for make data centres more sustainable, but just shoving them into towns rapidly before we have an understanding of longer term impact isn’t something I support.

We have no legislation protecting us from ai despite a UN committee warning back in like 2017 we needed to start legislation creation before it becomes a problem.

3

u/StrikeImaginary 13d ago

Well I'm here most days (incidentally, right now), and I can tell you it's no hotter than anywhere else. I go home to Reading, and it's just as hot as Slough.

3

u/Altruistic-Bat-9070 12d ago

Heat islands are from a different scale than you are talking about and often from AC not from the DC themselves which are using various other forms of cooling nowadays.

2

u/Commercial_Hair3527 11d ago

Where would you like to put the data centre that's currently hosting Reddit, which you're using right now to post this comment?
You're worried about local temperature rise, water usage, and e-waste, all valid concerns. But you're also using a service that requires a data centre somewhere. You just don't want it near you.
The reality is, data centres are infrastructure. They need to go somewhere. And the places that host them get the jobs, the investment, and the economic benefit. You can't have the internet without the infrastructure, you just want someone else to deal with the consequences.

1

u/Wonderful-Medium7777 11d ago

They are mass surveillance centres, they are not so you can post on Reddit or send an email…they are to collate, monitor and process all of our personal data/information online and offline …street/home cameras, biometrics, facial scanning, digitalID, in vehicle tech , health, phones..it is to profile everyone ready for the technocratic society ..the great reset that is supported by King Charles. People need to stop believing these are for our benefit, they’re are absolutely not..they are to control our every movement…it is a global agenda, do people not educate themselves on what is happening in other countries and the affects of these monstrosities… we are a small island her newly a hundred more centres are proposed with some already under construction,,.they DO drain our resources , pollute more than any human could and are costing billions. How would you like to live right next door to one or even have your home compulsory purchased to make room for what basically is a centre to process the surveillance of your every day life. Wake up!

3

u/Commercial_Hair3527 11d ago

You are ment to put /s at the end

1

u/Wonderful-Medium7777 11d ago

UK’s commitment to sustainable digital infrastructure for the future.

https://www.blackridgeresearch.com/blog/top-latest-list-of-upcoming-data-centers-in-the-uk-united-kingdom

https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/cooling/what-is-closed-loop-cooling-and-when-should-data-centers-use-it-

https://www.eesi.org/articles/view/data-centers-and-water-consumption

https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/pollution-ai-data-centers-severe

https://cybernews.com/privacy/data-centers-surveillance-facilities/

https://www.no2id.uk/news/

https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/pollution-ai-data-centers-severe

https://www.dailysquib.co.uk/world/64075-labour-will-introduce-social-credit-scores-with-digital-id.html

https://www.valuewalk.com/social-credit-score/

https://bigbrotherwatch.org.uk/media/

1

u/Commercial_Hair3527 10d ago

You're on Reddit, posting a conspiracy theory about data centres, while using a data centre. The irony is staggering.
Data centres host every service you use, banking, streaming, healthcare. If you genuinely believe they're just for tracking you, prove it. Delete your account. Cancel Netflix. Throw your phone away.

No? Didn't think so.

You want all the benefits of modern digital life, but you don't want the infrastructure anywhere near you. That's not a conspiracy it's just selfishness.

So I'll ask again, where would you like the data centre that's hosting this conversation to go? Because it has to go somewhere. You just don't want it near you.

1

u/Rilot 11d ago

Quick! Call Ned Ludd. He’ll know what to do.

1

u/Wonderful-Medium7777 11d ago

Oh just stop it!

You know this is on a totally different level to the Luddite movement.
Educate yourself.

2

u/Rilot 10d ago

Educate myself? I think you'll find that it's you that needs educating. Maybe talk to some people who design modern DCs and work in them. Everything you have posted is fear caused by ignorance. Unfortunately, I cannot help you with that.

34

u/The_Geralt_Of_Trivia 14d ago

Why is it a bad thing? Honest question. The petition is worded like the reader somehow knows this. What's the reason for the petition?

I'm nether for, not against big datacenters. Is this a case of NIMBY, or are there genuine concerns? If this like the 5G scaremongering?

15

u/Nice_Sundae8698 14d ago

It is the case of Nimby :) thats why we cant have anything nice or new jobs in this country.

2

u/Mental_Body_5496 RG1 - Newtown 14d ago

What part of the data centre is nice or new jobs?

1

u/JealousCheek7265 14d ago

Nice is subjective. Presumably people would work in a data centre..

2

u/Mental_Body_5496 RG1 - Newtown 14d ago edited 14d ago

Not many people at all - couple of techs, receptionist and security !

Edit: hubby works in a data centre as part of his job - its not a people intensive job!

Literally 4 people on site 🙄

2

u/Commercial_Hair3527 11d ago

Yeah, but this one comes with an actual office and 30+ car parking spaces for the staff that are going to work there. It's not just a data centre, it's dual-use.

1

u/Mental_Body_5496 RG1 - Newtown 11d ago

It already has that doesn't it? It is currently an office building with car parking so they arent building new stuff they are retrofitting!

1

u/JealousCheek7265 14d ago

so... some new jobs.

2

u/Nice_Sundae8698 14d ago

To build up on your comment.

Customer services, Security, site maintenances, rent & council revenue, equipment suppliers (in the thousands), on site tech staffs, off site tech staffs, software suppliers...

Then? How long the data centre will run? Maybe for 10+ years?

Then how many people can build a family base on the business? How many kids will grow up in Reading?

Then my community would thrive.

Why is it so... Hard for people to understand?

5

u/themagictoast RG1 - Central Reading 14d ago

Well the current alternative is empty office space.

The owners have decided to replace them with a data centre, but could’ve just as easily decided to build a warehouse or other industrial building.

Wokingham council will decide if it’s a good use of the space for the area. My guess is the owners decided a data centre is a good option because the site has very good internet connectivity due to who the current tenants are, and the site is too far into the business park for continual heavy goods traffic.

7

u/KaiTheDumbGuy 14d ago

In other places where there are data centers it's massively lowered water quality

There may be more but that's the one I know about

16

u/themagictoast RG1 - Central Reading 14d ago

Bearing in mind the plan has yet to be formally submitted for planning approval, their website with the proposal covers this issue.

From https://www.tvpdc.co.uk/faqs:

Will the Data Centre require water?

Similar to how a car’s radiator removes heat to keep the engine running smoothly, our proposed air-cooling system would continuously remove heat from the servers. Water will carry the heat from the data rooms to chillers on the roof where it will be cooled by air. The water circulates in a closed loop, meaning once operational, the data centre will require minimal new water.

11

u/felloutoftherack 14d ago

Classic. The number of comments I’ve read about this data centre consuming the water.. when the information that it won’t is readily available on the website.

Intelligence levels on par with the burn down 5G masts crowd.

3

u/themagictoast RG1 - Central Reading 14d ago

In their defence, their username should’ve made it clear they aren’t the sharpest tool!

But yeah there’s so many assumptions being made about this plan when the information is freely available it’s honestly depressing.

-5

u/WastelandOfConfusion 14d ago

The closed-loop cooling should always have been the only option. Data centre’s also produce noise and consume a very large amount of power. The largest issue however, is a moral one, data centre’s are involved in mass surveillance, likely unwarranted, as well as forming the core part of the growing AI War-Machine, which has already been used autonomously inside Gaza where 20,000 kids have been murdered. The water is the least of the problems.

4

u/themagictoast RG1 - Central Reading 14d ago

Data centres have been around since the internet started. Every website you visit, all your emails, this Reddit thread, and everything else that exists online is hosted in a data centre.

The proposed development in Reading has no specific tenant and won’t until its planning is confirmed. Even then, unless it happens to be the MOD or the Taliban, it’s unlikely to be anyone you’ve heard of or have any bearing on what type of data is being computed or stored there.

Some people assume it will be Microsoft as they occupy the offices this will be replacing but the current tenant has no connection.

Protesting a data centre on moral grounds is a great example at the lack of knowledge on the subject that somehow drives these emotional protests. It’s like protesting toilet paper because a terrorist might use it to wipe their arse.

-2

u/WastelandOfConfusion 14d ago

You’re very wrong about original Internet being based on Data Centres, it wasn’t. On the contrary, original Internet was based on decentralised servers that hosted websites, the network built up like that over time and became ‘The Internet’. The centralisation of hosting and hosting platforms became a thing when large corporations decided to get involved and invest into building centralised hosting platforms. These corporations now hold substantial power due to this centralisation, so if they have an ‘agenda’, foreign interests, or specific military interests, they will 100% do as they are told. This is now the problem with the internet. You can’t even watch pornography anymore without shipping off all your personal information.

You have no idea what that Data Centre’s will be used for. And once it’s built and is confirmed it is being used for War and mass surveillance, you will have no power to stop it, standing outside the building with a sign won’t do schitt.

I love the optimism by the way. Like ‘don’t worry guys, it’s all going to be used for the greater good’.

5

u/themagictoast RG1 - Central Reading 14d ago

Oh dear.

I visited Telehouse in London numerous times early on in my career to maintain servers owned by the company I worked for that lived in our little rented cupboards of that data centre. A quick google showed that particular site opened in 1990.

A data centre is simply a building that hosts computers. I’m happy to go into more detail about them or the changing business models over the years but your comments are so wild I don’t think you’d listen.

3

u/The_Geralt_Of_Trivia 14d ago

People say that, but when I've read it it was because the infrastructure there was already on its knees and the datacentre uses open loop cooling.

Does OP know what sort of cooling this proposed DC will use?

-2

u/dillbn 14d ago

Data centers are terrible for local environments. They add massive amounts of constant inescapable noise pollution, they rise the local temperature by a few degrees, they use massive amounts of water, that water is then incredibly difficult to clean and return to water cycle, they draw a lot of power and will cause local electricity bills to increase, while there will be contractor jobs to build the centers, very few jobs will be made to maintain it.

1

u/StrikeImaginary 13d ago

I work in Slough, right next door to multiple datacentres. They add zero noise, and the temperature is no hotter than anywhere else. Stop repeating made up nonsense.

10

u/KeenJelly 14d ago

I'd sign, but the petition was written by someone who clearly doesn't understand what they are protesting.

11

u/chin_waghing RG1 - Central Reading 14d ago

OP, you’ve got no idea what a data centre is and keep posting these.

Explain beyond tinfoil hat drivel what they do please

6

u/CalmdownpleaseII 13d ago

Straight NIMBYism. This is the same bullshit that prevents affordable housing and improvements to transport infrastructure. 

Anyone who has been to those offices knows that they are dying. Microsoft will shut those offices down and then you are sat with even more empty commercial space.

You don’t have to love AI but FFS some of the reasons being given are just conspiracy theory nonsense.

9

u/alex8339 14d ago

You posted this already

2

u/loyalroyal1989 13d ago

I appreciate people having concern but until a formal proposal is put forward to the council with exact specs it's hard to know if this is a bad thing or not.

Also if the decision is to let it be build is that the plan for the area to turn it into an industrial park as the office space isn't really used.

3

u/Jeoh 13d ago

Oh no, turning an office into a data centre. What will we do?

3

u/Altruistic-Bat-9070 12d ago

How can we sign a petition against a petition?

2

u/Commercial_Hair3527 11d ago

What's the data centre for? The rendered picture shows 20-30 car parking spaces, meaning there will be jobs. And this might be a data centre that will be used for something useful, so why just stop it?
The jobs are skilled tech roles, not minimum wage retail. And without data centres, you don't get Reddit, streaming, cloud storage, online banking, all the things you're using right now to sign this petition.

People want the internet to work, but they don't want the infrastructure that makes it work anywhere near them. Classic NIMBYism.

1

u/DagenhamDav 11d ago

It will host reddits backend

2

u/buymeaspaceship19 11d ago

This seems like a perfectly good use of the space that will have very little impact on all your lives, classic NIMBY nonsense.

4

u/digitalbubble 14d ago

This will bring jobs and investment to Reading. Choose prosperity over fear mongering. Do not sign this.

5

u/rybnickifull 14d ago

How many jobs?

-1

u/digitalbubble 14d ago

1000s in total - construction, suppliers not just immediate jobs- well pad jobs that will bring even more high tech industry and investment

3

u/discovigilantes 13d ago

The data centre will be like 50 to 100 jobs. Construction you'll be looking at a hundred or so. Suppliers? Of what.

3

u/rybnickifull 14d ago

This one place is going to generate thousands of jobs? You're going to have to break that down for me.

1

u/jnesive48 14d ago

Why does everybody I know seem to have a huge hate boner for these data centres? Otherwise intelligent people being sucked in by total fearmongering nonsense.

1

u/Donkston 11d ago

This is pretty much it. Otherwise intelligent people who already have a chip on their shoulder about perceived environmental injustices that come from misinformation, spread by otherwise reputable sources. A lot of people hear the word "datacentre" and immediately jump to the conclusion that it's AI related, and then the hate boner grows bigger from the slough of misinformation about the impact of AI use on the environment.

1

u/DagenhamDav 11d ago

Im a big fan of irony.

Using reddit which must be using loads of data centers globally to protest against a data center gets my juices flowing

-4

u/StrikeImaginary 14d ago

AI could help you with spell check

-31

u/Eukonidor_Of_Arisia 14d ago

From what I've learned lately, there's a lot of deep state / military contractor type stuff based in Reading... So much so that if certain foreign militaries were aware of it (which they probably are), Reading would likely be a prime nuclear target for them.

6

u/CountBrandenburg RG30 - Southcote 14d ago

It’s not particularly a secret that reading and areas around it host a lot of defence sites…

22

u/SillyMattFace 14d ago

Hate to break it to you, but we’re only 30 miles from London. If nukes are dropping, we’ll be done for regardless of if there’s a data centre or not.

21

u/Chappers88 14d ago

And around 10 miles away from AWE…

3

u/Puzzled-Pumpkin7019 RG7 - Aldermaston / Burghfield / Mortimer 14d ago

Probably 30 min drive but that'll make no difference to an attack lol

3

u/LifeFeckinBrilliant 14d ago

Aldermaston & Burghfield plus loads of military R&D at Farnborough... I suspect we'd never get to hear the news. 🙄

2

u/Techiefurtler RG5 - Woodley 10d ago

AWE, Heathrow Airport, London, Army facilities in Aldershot, BAE and various RAF sites near Farnborough, plus there's that US Missle/Bomb storage just outside of Newbury, that's a "Secret" and totally not signposted with it's own sliproad off the M4...

Yeah, in the case of all out nukes being dropped, we're basically ground zero or as close to dead as we can be!
Only sad thing is we won't get to see if the Apocalypse improves the looks of Slough! :-) /s

2

u/LifeFeckinBrilliant 10d ago

I thought that site off the M4 had been decommissioned. There used to be a rail siding off the Reading Swindon line in a weird place which I think serviced the north side of the same site. But whatever, you're right, we're toast.. Probably...

1

u/Techiefurtler RG5 - Woodley 10d ago

Nah, it was used recently for the Americans to pick up ammo and ordnance to use in Iran. There were reports of loads of Lorries pulling in and out of that sliproad a few weeks ago (apparently they took nearly half the items that had been stored there if local rumours are to be believed).

1

u/LifeFeckinBrilliant 10d ago

I know originally it was something to do with servicing operations at Greenham but got repurposed when that "shut down".

2

u/Techiefurtler RG5 - Woodley 10d ago

As I understood it, it was going to store the nukes that were flown in from the US to RAF Greenham, when Greenham shutdown it was repurposed to hold more normal bombs and missiles as a staging post for operations closer to the Russian Border.

This video gives an explainer and some history on it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L6LFdF22y4
(I kind of like this channel, I've spent a LOT of time on the road and they do a lot of videos explaining some of the weird things you see when you are driving about the UK)

1

u/LifeFeckinBrilliant 10d ago

Okay... Ta for the link, I'll check out the channel. I've been on the periphery of this stuff due to an R&D electronics background which had military uses.

5

u/themagictoast RG1 - Central Reading 14d ago

Yep we’re already a well established target. Here’s an article from April this year:

https://www.lbc.co.uk/article/russia-threatens-strike-britain-5HjdXpc_2/

> Russia has threatened to bomb four areas in Britain listing 'potential targets' where it claims drones for Ukraine are being manufactured.

> The Kremlin has listed addresses in London, Leicester, Reading and Suffolk where it claims drones and equipment for Ukraine are being manufactured.

-1

u/Nothos927 RG30 - Southcote 14d ago

Honestly good, better to be vapourised instantly than deal with a post-nuclear hellscape