Art Data Centres wants to build a Data Centre in Ennis, Co. Clare that will emit as much carbon each year as over 50,000 people like you and me.

Three individuals, Colin Doyle, Martin Knox and Christine Sharp and two organisations – Friends of the Irish Environment and Futureproof Clare - are challenging the decision of An Coimisiún Pleanála to approve this proposed development.

We are asking you to help fund this important case in the High Court in October. Your contribution - whether €10, €100 or €1000 - is a great investment you can make for the climate. Not taking a flight or buying an electric car saves about 1 tonne of carbon emissions a year. Stopping this data centre saves more than 500,000 tonnes every year.

It’s not just a climate impact. The proposed data centre will use electricity from the grid (80 MW) which is more than the total existing electricity consumption in County Clare. They will also have on-site power generation of 120 MW, fuelled by fossil gas that will pollute the atmosphere. They will use huge amounts of water, equivalent to 3000 houses, and risk water shortages in Ennis. The benefits? A few hundred jobs that could pull out overnight. If this data centre goes ahead there would be no spare electricity capacity to power other more sustainable industrial projects, or to power and provide water for our much needed new housing stock.

The developer claims they use renewable energy based on the percentage that we have on the grid - but we need all the exisiting renewables on the grid and much more for our existing demand. They say they will have solar generation on site - but it's only 0.07% of their needs. They say they will make excess heat available for district heating. But there is no district heating network in Ennis.

Please give what you can to support this High Court action. Contact us if you would like any further information.

About us:

Dr. Colin Doyle is a retired environmental scientist living in Ennis

Dr. Martin Knox is a retired chemist living in Ennis

Christine Sharp is a lifelong environmental activist in Co. Clare

Friends of the Irish Environment is a company formed by environmental activists to bring legal challenges in the Irish Courts on key environmental issues https://www.friendsoftheirishenvironment.org

Futureproof Clare is a grassroots environmental group campaigning for social and environmental justice https://www.futureproofclare.ie

Bridget Ginnity, an environmental campaigner, is the administrator of this go fund me campaign.