banning data centres<\/a> across the city.<\/p>\nPerth officers said data centres had unique impacts on infrastructure, energy, water and urban amenity that differ from conventional commercial and industrial developments.<\/p>\n
The proposed submission calls for electricity demand, water consumption, cooling systems and other infrastructure requirements to be considered during planning assessments, rather than only through a utility connection processes.<\/p>\n
If approved, the city will also call for an Australia-wide definition of data centres, guidance identifying suitable locations, and a co-ordinated assessment process involving local and State governments.<\/p>\n
\u201cData centres are critical infrastructure for Australia\u2019s digital economy, yet their rapid growth has exposed gaps in existing planning frameworks,\u201d the proposed submission says.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost planning schemes do not contain a dedicated land-use definition for data centres, creating uncertainty in how proposals are classified and assessed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe city therefore supports a nationally consistent planning framework that provides a clear land use definition for data centres, guides their strategic location, and ensures that energy, water, infrastructure, amenity and land-use impacts are appropriately considered.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe city also supports the establishment of planning and assessment pathways for major data centre developments that enable the concurrent consideration of local planning matters and strategic infrastructure impacts, including energy, water, network capacity and broader resource security implications.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis would provide greater certainty for industry, communities and planning authorities, while ensuring data centre development supports Australia\u2019s digital future and long-term urban planning objectives.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to city officers, current planning schemes do not adequately define or regulate data centres and can leave councils treating them as an \u201cunlisted use\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis creates uncertainty for proponents, decision-makers and the community,\u201d the proposed submission says.<\/p>\n
The submission focuses on large facilities being built in city centres, mixed-use precincts and residential areas, saying they can have \u201clow operational employment density, limited public access, restricted street engagement, security setbacks, large floor plates and blank or inactive facades\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cData centres can also generate amenity and urban design impacts, including mechanical plant and generator noise, heat rejection, visual impacts, servicing movements and reduced passive surveillance,\u201d the proposed submission states.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlanning authorities should therefore consider both the operational impacts of data centres and the opportunity cost of locating them on high-value urban land intended for more active and publicly engaging uses.\u201d<\/p>\n
The city says its proposed framework \u201cshould not prevent data centre development\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt should provide certainty and ensure that data centres are located where they best support infrastructure efficiency, economic development and long-term urban planning outcomes,\u201d the proposed submission states.<\/p>\n
Senate inquiry submissions close on September 1.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"City of Perth staff say data centres need their own set of rules amid fears the rapidly expanding…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":77529,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[917,3683,1774,152,335,149,464],"class_list":["post-77528","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-perth","tag-central","tag-environment","tag-local-government","tag-news","tag-perth","tag-politics","tag-wa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77528","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77528"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77528\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/77529"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77528"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77528"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77528"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}