South Mimms data centre team address environmental concerns

In particular, residents comprising the Potters Bar Special Interest Group (PBSIGRA) said "hundreds" of objections were sent in opposing the plans, which were green-lit regardless by Hertsmere Borough Council back in January this year.

In an interview with the Welwyn Hatfield Times, we put a few major concerns to James Tyler and Andrew Higgins - two key players within Equinix, the global data giant which announced it had bought the site in October.

The 85-acre plot is situated on green belt land to the east of South Mimms services. (Image: DC01UK)

One of the biggest points of debate is the fact the 85-acre development is on green belt land.

Multiple residents expressed concern about losing a valuable and scenic green space which includes 11 public rights of way.

Eamonn Lynch, a retired resident of South Mimms said he and his wife regularly walk to Potters Bar, on a route passing through the site.

"It is a beautiful part of the Hertfordshire countryside," Eamonn said.

According to Andrew, Equinix's head of master-planning and sustainability, retaining "high value" ecological features like woodland or streams, is central to the company's plans.

He added: "Whilst we're not required to provide access to our land, we're creating natural spaces and we fully intend to introduce walkways so that the public can actually continue to access that space.

"50 per cent of the plot is going to remain as as open space, and it's going to be better quality open space than the farmland that it was previously."

New ponds, wetlands, wildflower meadows and "lots of trees" are among the features to be included, with the team saying they are investing heavily in advice from specialist ecologists in order to deliver the best results.

James Tyler is Equinix's managing director. (Image: Equinix)

Another key concern is the potential air pollution created by emissions from the £3.9 billion development, especially considering the proximity of Dame Alice Owen's, Wroxham and Pope Paul schools.

But, Andrew assured, the opportunities for the new centre to impact air pollution are "very limited", and the only source of emissions would be backup diesel generators.

To avoid using these , the team plans to connect to the "most reliable part of the grid" at "transmission level", meaning the generators would only be used in the event of a "catastrophic mains power failure".

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During the construction phase, the team admitted there will be some impact to air quality, usually regarding ground-based activities like piling or moving soil around.

"We have quite stringent requirements in our construction management plans to to mitigate those impacts," Andrew noted.

In addition, he shared plans to do "a lot of the significant construction work in one phase", to reduce the amount of time spent impacting the air.

Supporting his colleague's credentials, Equinix's managing director, James, said: "Andrew has built up his team over the last few years to make sure that we do this in a sensitive and sustainable way."

The £3.9 billion development would be one of Europe's biggest data centres. (Image: DC01UK)

But, a spokesperson for the PBSIGRA said: "There is no safe level of air pollution for school children", and ensuring any pollution caused by the Equinix site is medically negligible should be of tantamount importance.

The group also raised concerns around road safety and traffic management, again with surrounding schools in mind.

Andrew stressed: "We do very, very detailed traffic management flows and we over and above what's required."

According to James, the team is "working very hard" on community engagement, which the PBSIGRA said they thought was lacking.

James said: "We appreciate when something like this is announced that there can be a lot of uncertainty.

"It is a beautiful part of the Hertfordshire countryside." (Image: DC01UK)

"We are endeavouring to be very proactive and very transparent with the local community to the extent that we'll also be standing up a local Community Advisory Board.

"We look forward to a very long and positive relationship."

If you still have questions or concerns, the team urged residents to head to equinixtogether.com/hertfordshire/, where you can use the "getting in touch" tab to make sure your voices are heard.