Tallaght: data centres and the energy transition

When most people think of energy transitions, they tend to think of sites where fossil fuels are most clearly used or extracted - think coal mines, or power plants. However, with the growing energy demands of large-scale digitalisation, places like Tallaght, Co. Dublin - which hosts several Amazon Web Services (AWS) data centres - are becoming locations of intensive energy politics and development.

In 2023, data centres utilised (opens in a new window)21% of Ireland’s electricity, and (opens in a new window)50% in County Dublin alone. Compared to the European average of 1-3%, this is an incredibly high percentage. In this context, data centres - primarily built and developed by big tech, cloud “hyperscalers” like AWS, Google, and Microsoft - are becoming central actors in Ireland’s energy transition strategies.

At the same time, this disproportionate energy use is amplifying concerns about the unequal and undemocratic ways in which the energy transition is occurring. What are the place-based concerns of working class communities like those in Tallaght being subject to such significant data centre developments and expansion? What are the implications for housing, the environment, gender, Travellers’ rights, social infrastructure, and other localised issues? How do communities consider, and fight for, energy justice amidst these challenges?

On the 23rd of May, the IE-NARR team hosted a one-day workshop at (opens in a new window)Rua Red in Tallaght to ask these questions, with 20 community members, interest groups, and academic stakeholders. Tallaght and Clondalkin are surrounded by digital industries, and we discussed the role and impact of data centres, state policy, infrastructure, and cultural heritage on the distinct spatial, socioeconomic, and ecological contexts of this part of Dublin.

Heritage meets future

We began the day with a tour of the history and cultural heritage of Tallaght with local writer Albert Perris, author of (opens in a new window)A Ramble about Tallaght. We kicked off with the folkloric arrival of Parthalon the Greek in Tallaght, whose foray into the area can still be seen in the naming conventions of landmarks and buildings in the area. In spite of the very recent character of most of the local architecture and built environment, Albert situated the geography in the longue durée of local history. Taking us through the spatial and built heritage of Tallaght, all the way up through the Civil War and post-WWII industrialisation, we arrived at a destination more directly related to our theme for the day: the Heatworks Energy Centre, site of the Tallaght District Heating Scheme.

A partnership between Codema (Dublin’s Energy Agency), South Dublin County Council, and Amazon Web Services (AWS), the facility processes and distributes waste heat, as water, from the neighbouring AWS data centre to nearby sites, including TUD and local authority buildings. The representative for Codema showed us around the plant, informing us that it is nearly 100% automated, with very little on-site labour required to sustain its operations.

The argument for district heating is that it more efficiently centralises heating infrastructure, and that those running the system are able to monitor directly where the heat is coming from (e.g. renewable sources). In the case of AWS, it cannot be guaranteed that the heat is produced using renewable energy, as AWS draws power from the grid - however, we were assured that this is a step towards circularity, as the heat would be wasted if not harnessed through the scheme, and the system operates in a closed-loop, recirculating the water. 

Discussions were had about the ideal shape and social necessity of such systems during a time of decarbonisation. Our guide offered a unique perspective on the matter, having worked with district heating systems in Kosovo. He stressed that if Amazon were to shut off access to their wastewater, the operation could still function by utilising the on-site air-to-heat pumps and through the potential of geothermal developments at a nearby partner’s site. The main issue with district heating is that it needs to be installed in local areas through underground piping, which is expensive. To comprehensively retrofit Tallaght with district heating is a prospect beyond Codema’s current operations, although they are hoping to expand to new clients.

Community workshop

We returned to Rua Red, and attendees were able to browse industry maps and chat about the tour. The afternoon was devoted to a community counter-mapping workshop, aiming to further explore the place-based politics of energy transition in Tallaght. We achieved this through three themed tables - “Policy,” “Infrastructure,” and “Heritage”- as well as an “open” table capturing any concerns that were not expressed at the themed tables. Each table had a large printed Ordnance Survey map of Tallaght and the surrounding area. With project leads and collaborators guiding discussion, participants added their thoughts and ideas onto the maps as a way to illustrate and build discussion. The goal was to create living layers onto the static official map representation of Tallaght, capturing local knowledge that conditions community perceptions of the energy transition. The participants visited each of the three themed tables over the course of the afternoon.

Policy

This table focused on two types of policy: digital policy and energy policy. Together, these have been described as major drivers of the “twin transition” to a sustainable future. To begin with, participants discussed the absence of a comprehensive government policy on data centres, and linked to this, queried who should receive priority in various policy decisions surrounding the twin transition: large multinational companies or local citizens? These concerns were closely tied to the premium on space in an urban area like Tallaght, which becomes even more evident when considering the “cubification” of the landscape through data centre construction. Other topics of conversation at this table were the “black box” nature of data centres, where it remains unclear what kind of data is stored and what purpose it serves exactly; this was a key concern given the significant energy consumption of the centres and the rising need to deliver large-scale renewable infrastructure (both sites of production and grid upgrades) throughout Ireland to meet this need. It was highlighted that the Government’s target for offshore wind energy production alone is 37GW by 2050, which far exceeds current national peak demand - and this has been tied to Ireland’s potential to “add value” to electricity by adding further data centre capacity. However, the question remains whether this is a desirable policy target; or whether the government should aim for certain limits to energy and digital growth instead.

Infrastructure

Participants used this table as a chance to comprehensively map the infrastructure of the area - from social, to energy, to telecoms, to transport infrastructure. We were able to triangulate where the T50 fibre optic cable passes, as well as local substations and transport connections. These have made the neighbourhood and nearby Clondalkin an attractive prospect for data centre development. But by the end of the day, the contradictions and shortcomings of local infrastructure were readily apparent - tramlines that were lost to history, bike lanes that remained unfinished, transit connections to the city centre but not to housing estates, unevenly distributed parks and green spaces. At the centre of the map was AWS and its massive data centre campuses, connected to the facilities that use it as a heat source through the District Heating Scheme. However, these were relatively few. Attendees noticed that energy transition did not just mean retrofitting and heating houses, or sourcing the grid with more renewable energy; it would also mean a transformation in the logics and policies of infrastructural planning. Why is this urban neighbourhood so car-centric? What systems would we need to put in place to enact a truly just and equal energy transition that accounts for these gaps? Attendees were struck by the importance of rejuvenating democracy - and challenging accepted norms of who administers and decides on these energy transitions - in achieving spatial and climate justice in Tallaght.

Cultural heritage

The cultural heritage table considered the impact of Tallaght's urban planning on how locals have “expended energy” moving around the area. We discussed how Tallaght's urban development furthered a deep local sense of alienation and displacement.  Tallaght was built for car users, rather than pedestrians or public transport users, and for many years locals walked several kilometers from estates in Jobstown to the local shop in Kilnamanagh. The contemporary shape of the area - grid-like , with the “centre” containing large industrial parks, showrooms, data centres, a major hospital, and the Square shopping centre (rather than parks, playgrounds, playing fields, community centres, local services, etc.) - is, aside from being very energy intensive, discouraging of pedestrians, and unwelcoming to anyone who doesn't work or consume in the area. 

In our discussion, we repeatedly noted how cultural heritage and energy infrastructure is closely linked to local geologic and geographic features. The early medieval town centre was built around the monastery of the ascetic Saint Maelruin, which has left tangible traces on the landscape today - including the gentle curve of Tallaght main street, and the ditch behind Smyth's Toys, all of which are near the River Poddle. The Amazon data centre, and adjacent Heatworks, sits atop the Poddle, and indeed the river was rerouted during the data centre's construction. Much of the Poddle now remains underground - despite its significance to Dublin City, which developed next to the Black Pool/Dubh Linn created by the Poddle.

We also discussed how the geographies of surrounding areas affected the energy pasts and futures of the region. Nearby Clondalkin, which houses one of the highest concentrations of data centres in Ireland in Grange Castle Business Park, sits next to the Grand Canal and is crossed by the Camac River. We discussed the importance of fresh water access to data centres, and wondered what a fresh water-energy use map would look like in the area. South West of Tallaght are the green fields of Belgard, Newland's Golf Club, and Belgard Quarry - Ireland's largest limestone quarry. Despite the perception of the area as being one of urban sprawl and mismanagement, it is rich in natural resources, which are being harnessed by extractive industries. But a counter map lies in the work of Sinéad Curran and her peers, who are embarking on an ambitious tree planting project across Clondalkin, which would see the area replanted by over 12,000 native trees.

Open table

The open table was designed to capture any topics we may have missed, while also providing an opportunity for participants to take a break from the facilitated discussions at the other tables. It was noted that, while the cafe outside the workshop space was full of people from the local community, very few of these people were inside the workshop exploring the maps. Utilising these maps as a chance to assist in and restore local participation in spatial planning around the energy transition is an area for further exploration.

Next steps

The maps from the workshop will be displayed at a public venue in Tallaght, and stored in the long term at UCD. They will also be photographed, and these images will be made publicly available on our website soon. The workshop produced many connections for us and others - and promises to produce further research collaborations and community solidarity surrounding the role of data centres in the politics of energy, housing, social infrastructure, and the environment in southwest Dublin.

One concrete follow-up from the event is a self-guided tour of “data centre country” in nearby Clondalkin. Drawing from local knowledge, a tree planting project co-led by Sinéad Curran, and infrastructural tourism, this 30-minute tour allows visitors to grapple with the intersections of cultural and spatial heritage, ecological and infrastructural change, and the affective dimensions of scale at the heart of the changes affecting this part of Dublin. We link to the self-guided tour at the bottom of this page.

Meanwhile, we are keen to continue the conversation on energy narratives and the transition from fossil fuels towards renewable sources of energy. We will especially focus on who owns this energy, how it is used, and how it impacts the local community. The Tallaght workshop was the second of three workshops exploring these themes. The next workshop will take place in Clifden, Connemara in Autumn 2025. Please contact us for further information, and stay tuned for updates on the website.