Cape Town groups challenge land rezoning for Equinix
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on IOL
Illustrative image · Waqas ilyas · Pexels · Licence PexelsAssociations are challenging the rezoning of land near the Barcelona neighbourhood in Cape Town, which could allow US company Equinix to build a data centre there. They denounce the facilities’ consumption of water and electricity in a city where residents lack access to these resources, AFP reports.
South African associations are challenging the rezoning of a plot near Cape Town International Airport acquired by Equinix, a US company that operates around 280 data centres worldwide. They are calling for a halt to new data centre projects in South Africa because of their consumption of water and electricity in a city where thousands of residents lack access to these services, according to AFP.
The Housing Assembly movement, the British organisation Foxglove and other groups have appealed against the rezoning, which could allow Equinix to build a hyperscale data centre near the disadvantaged neighbourhood of Barcelona. The hearing took place in October, and a non-binding recommendation is expected within 90 days. Equinix says it has no immediate plans for the site.
South Africa already has more than 60 data centres, the highest number on the continent, while Cape Town has around a dozen and has approved five new licences. Housing Assembly and the Extinction Rebellion group are calling for specific, binding rules to regulate the sector’s expansion, driven in particular by artificial intelligence. The government presents the country as “Africa’s digital gateway”, according to AFP.
Legal expert Saadiyah Kadwa of the Legal Resources Centre, which represents Housing Assembly and the other associations, believes the rapid expansion of data centre sites must be accompanied by clarification of the applicable rules, according to AFP.
