‘Dumping ground for data centres’ Locals ‘extremely worried’ in land haunted by ghosts of industry’s past

It’s here in amongst the ghosts of these industry’s past, that plans to develop one of Europe’s largest data centres have quietly gained ground.

Designated as an AI growth zone, successive governments and political leaders are hoping to establish the North East as a data centre hub, with the promise of bringing investment and desperately needed jobs.

In Cambois, a former coal mining village of roughly 1,000 people near Blyth, work has already begun on a 540,000-square metre centre by QTS, who are owned by the American firm Blackstone. The £10billion 'campus' comprising of 10 new buildings is planned on the now-demolished Blyth power station.

Just a stone’s throw in West Sleekburn, another £3.8billion campus is being planned on agricultural land on the former GlaxoSmithKline pharmaceutical site along the River Wansbeck.

And just last month, the Northumberland Gazette reported that plans for the county’s third data centre had been submitted. The proposed site would also be built in Cambois.

But with fears over excessive water usage, possible power outages, noise pollution, heat emission and the risk of forever chemicals leaking into waterways...local opposition is beginning to calcify.

‘Nobody cares about the North East’

Hannah Bolton founded a petition to stop the QTS site. The student from nearby Whitley Bay told LBC she is concerned about the impact on wildlife and green spaces.

“It's really sad because obviously we have such beautiful beaches and woodland like Holywell Dene. Obviously if this gets built, we might lose these community spaces.”

When quizzed on why she thinks the North East was chosen as a growth site, Hannah thinks it was because of the socio-economic situation in the region and high levels of poverty.

“No one will really care about putting data centres up here, because they already think that it’s not a nice area”.

“That’s why no one's talking about it because nobody cares about the North East,” she added.

‘Dumping ground for data centres’

Another local, who chose to remain anonymous, echoed this thought.

They told LBC: “It looks like we are becoming a dumping ground for data centres as there are rumours of many more appearing.

They added: “So many people have their heads in the sand over these centres and are ignoring it. Little do they know how imposing they will be.”

‘Extremely worried’

Caroline Mitchell takes part in beach cleans and litter picking with Newbiggin Environment Network. She told LBC the local climate group are “very suspicious” about the plans and noted how the plans for the centres are concentrated in southeastern Northumberland – the poorest part of the county.

“This area has been used by companies to extract resources and money.

“We’re very worried about the impact on the environment, especially the sound and amount of water that might be extracted from the river. It could have a terrible effect on limited resources that we have at the moment.”

She believes the lure of employment and industry is a "front”.

“We don’t think that these promised jobs will appear.”

‘Seen it before’

Local mum Amy thinks similarly.

"That's absolutely been my argument since the beginning. My ex-husband used to work on the shipyard, so I've seen it firsthand before,” she said. “They shut the shipyards down and then there are whispers of things being rebooted that will bring so many jobs and skills.

“It never ever happens,” she added.

She is part of a group who demonstrate near the QTS site every Wednesday.

“We've been trying to push back as much as possible and raise awareness,” she told LBC.

'Big sheds full of computers'

QTS have claimed the project could create approximately 1,200 construction jobs and 400 operational roles and aim to recruit 50% of workers from within 25 miles.

Foxglove, a non-profit organisation that monitors big tech has also questioned employment promises.

Donald Campbell, their spokesperson, told LBC there a “lack of independent scrutiny”.

“We've done some digging and found Northumberland County Council, and the government were repeating these claims they would produce thousands of jobs – which come directly from the developer, who will obviously make the best case for it.

“You get a bump at construction because they're big projects, but once it's up and running, they're ultimately big sheds full of computers.

“They might need local technicians and security but compared to maybe the sites that used to be there, (eg. mines, shipyards) it's not going to be those levels of employment.

He stressed: “I think it's important people aren't kind of given false hope about what to expect.”

A Northumberland County Council spokesperson said they have “full confidence” in the figures and information provided by QTS.

'Colossal amount of power'

Mr Campbell also warned data centres use a “colossal amount of power” and compared the quantity needed to that of a nuclear power station.

He called for firms to create their own energy - rather than potentially “destabilise” the National Grid.

“As I understand it, their plans are to connect to UK's electricity grid so they're not contributing any of their own generation. If they connect to the grid, they're drawing on the electricity everyone else needs.”

Water usage is another major potential issue.

Larissa Lockwood, a spokesperson for the charity Global Action Plan, told LBC usage for the centres would be equivalent of a small town, or roughly enough water for around 11,000 people.

“In North East terms, that’s about the size of Hexham,” she said.

She added: "We are already quite water-constrained, and the whole country is getting drier and drier in the summers. Why should data centres get priority?”

Larissa said if data centres are designated as national critical infrastructure, they could get priority over drinking water, local businesses, agriculture and even residents.

"That is a real risk for rural communities which already know what it is like to face storms, power cuts and fragile infrastructure.”

Global Action Plan has called for a national moratorium on the construction of data centres.

"Of course we are going to need some data centres, because there are good uses for AI. But how many do we need? Where is the best place to put them? What are they going to do to make them as sustainable as possible?”

QTS said its Cambois campus is designed to use closed-loop cooling systems, which it says will significantly reduce pressure on local water resources once operational.

Wansbeck Regeneration Ltd said its proposed West Sleekburn site has a private water supply, an existing power connection and operational noise levels expected to sit below current background noise.

Northern Powergrid said neither development was expected to affect the reliability of electricity supplies, while Northumbrian Water said it was working with developers to ensure water demand was sustainable and would not affect local communities.

‘Exemplary’

Trevor Austin, a Northumberland County Councillor for Bedlington East, admitted he was “skeptical” at first but said QTS won his support for the development through community engagement and delivering on local commitments.

“Their approach to the whole thing I think has been what you might call in many ways exemplary.”

He went on: “They're helping a church put their roof together. They are investing in a community centre, known as the Tute, which is an old miners' welfare institute. They've been funding the Blyth Spartans AFC, who were doing a drive for Alzheimer's”

Cllr Austin added Northumberland County Council overall will receive £100 million as part of the £10billion project. That’ll be for work creation schemes, training, cultural events, and community stuff. That's paid in stages as they complete each part of their project.”

However, Cllr Austin said the biggest impact for the community will be visual because the buildings will be “huge”.

“They're taking mitigation against those to actually make them look a bit more attractive, and they're still open to ideas about how they can mitigate against the, if you like, a big grey box.”

He added the mitigation would be 10-meter-high berms going around with trees.

'Rightly concerned'

The local MP, Ian Lavery, said people are “rightly concerned” about the impact of living near a data centre, whether that is its visual effect on the area or the pressure it could place on water and electricity supplies.

He added he shares those concerns and continues to press developers for answers about the true impact for those nearby.

“As AI and digital technologies become increasingly embedded in our society, there will undoubtedly be a need for the infrastructure that supports them. However, that infrastructure cannot simply be concentrated in a small number of communities, taking up land that could otherwise be used for jobs and economic development, without delivering meaningful benefits to local people.

“Cambois and West Sleekburn cannot simply become the plug-in centre for the rest of the country's digital needs.

"If critical national infrastructure is to be located here, then the people and communities hosting it must be properly recognised and compensated for the role they play.”

Deputy Leader Richard Wearmouth said Northumberland County Council “very much welcome” the £10bn project that has put our county at the heart of the AI revolution, “as I think, do the vast majority of residents”.

"That project has created a £110m growth fund administered by the council; will lead to locally retained business rates of up to £15m per year; and huge levels of cooperation on skills training, local employment, working with local contractors and so forth.”

Northumberland County Council spokesperson: "All matters were carefully considered by the Council's Strategic Planning Committee in March 2025 prior to planning approval being granted. This included a wide range of environmental issues.

Regarding the workforce, we have full confidence in the figures and information provided by QTS, including 1,200 construction jobs, 400 operational roles, 150 apprenticeships, a commitment to sourcing half the workforce from within 25 miles of the site and supporting the local supply chain."

A spokesperson for QTS said: "We believe our project can deliver lasting benefits for Cambois, Northumberland and the wider North-East.

“The campus will bring major inward investment, long-term skilled jobs, apprenticeships, training, local supply-chain opportunities, and community partnerships."

Wansbeck Regeneration LTD said: “The proposed data centre at West Sleekburn, as a former GlaxoSmithKline pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, benefits from its own private water supply, the noise generated by the site is below current background noise levels and an existing power connection has already been secured by the applicant.

“As a result, water supply to nearby residents will be unaffected by the proposal. Extensive noise monitoring has been carried out which confirms that the noise generated by the proposed operational plant will be below the existing background sound levels that are present in the immediate locality of the site.  

"The applicant has secured an existing Power Connection via the open market purchase of a connection agreement earmarked for another infrastructure project to avoid requiring any additional capacity identified for other forms of development. With regard to ecology, the scheme will deliver a 10% Biodiversity Net Gain as required, and increased opportunities to retain and improve habitat on site are being considered at present following on from further discussions with the Local Planning Authority. The applicant has sought to engage extensively with all stakeholders and is committed to further engagement.”

A spokesperson from Northern Powergrid said: “We understand local residents may have questions about the electricity demand associated with large-scale data centre developments. However, the proposed developments at Cambois and West Sleekburn are not expected to affect the reliability of electricity supplies for our customers.

“Maintaining a safe and reliable electricity network is our top priority. Large developments such as these are subject to detailed assessment and planning, with long-term supplies typically provided through the transmission network, to ensure electricity networks continue to operate safely and reliably.”

A spokesperson for Northumbrian Water said: "We’re working closely with data centre developers to make sure that any demands for water are sustainable and wouldn’t impact on our local communities.”

A Government spokesperson said: "A pause on building new data centres would simply send investment and good jobs abroad, while leaving Britain dependent on overseas computing for the processing of sensitive health and defence data.

"Put simply: it would be a disaster for jobs and national security.

"That said, this does not mean a blank cheque for Big Tech or that every data centre should be approved. Developers should prioritise clean power, use water responsibly, create British jobs and supply chains, and provide investment to the communities in which they are built."