Reactions around the planned data center in Pehchevo: concern for the environment

The council of the Municipality of Pehchevo is scheduled today to consider the initiative to prepare an urban plan for a facility intended for storing and keeping digital data on five parcels in the village of Pancarevo, a proposed measure that has already sparked reactions from citizens, initiatives and political parties because the investor has not been announced.

Lack of data and environmental concerns

Civic groups and local residents say the process is taking place without published impact studies, without analysis and without public debate. The question is raised as to which costs and obligations will remain with the municipality and residents and how the project will affect water, energy and nature in the Maleshevo region.

The initiative "Zelena narodna strazha" called on mayor Aleksandar Kitanski to answer who wants "to turn the green oasis of Macedonia into a desert" and demanded greater transparency and inclusion of the local community.

The political party DOM reacted with the statement: "It is unacceptable that a project with potentially serious impact on water, energy, nature and the local community be decided behind closed doors, without sufficient information, clear analyses and the involvement of experts and citizens." DOM added that "digital development must not be an excuse for non-transparency and for ignoring the public interest."

The party Levica, in its reaction, warned of the potential high consumption of electricity and water and demanded concrete answers: "Kitanski must explain why Pehchevo should put its land, electricity, water and infrastructure at the service of a data center, instead of directing those resources toward development that will bring real and lasting benefits to the local population. If this is an investment that allegedly will bring development to Pehchevo, let it show how many jobs will remain after construction, how much revenue the municipality will have, how much electricity and water will be consumed and what the public cost of its operation will be."

Environmental organizations also pointed to economic aspects: "Although data centers require a significant number of workers during construction, once put into operation they employ barely 30 to 50 people (mainly for security, technical maintenance and system administrators), and the bulk of the profit ends up with foreign technology companies, while the state is left with the costs for the resources and the cheap concession of land, which represents a typical example of economic extractivism," reacted "Zelen human grad" in June, adding that environmental protection regulations often exist only formally.

The reactions come several months after the announcement by the Minister of Transport and Communications, Aleksandar Nikoloski, that amendments to the Law on Urban Planning and the Law on Construction will enable the construction of data centers in the country. The government declared data centers as objects of national importance and introduced accelerated procedures in which expert review and a public survey are not mandatory, which critics see as a reason for further concern and a need for transparent local dialogue.

Photo: press material from the event