Amazon staff urge Seattle council to pause data centre expansion amid resource concerns
With proposed facilities demanding a third of the city’s daily electricity, tech workers argue that unchecked AI infrastructure buildouts ignore critical environmental and social costs.
The Seattle City Council is scheduled to vote on June 9 regarding a proposed one-year moratorium on new large-scale data centres. If passed, the measure would halt all new proposals for 12 months, providing the city time to consider new legislation governing the sector. The vote follows intense testimony from current and former Amazon employees, who joined dozens of residents and industry insiders in opposing the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Four unnamed companies have proposed five large-scale data centres in the region, with a combined maximum demand of 369 megawatts. This capacity represents approximately one-third of Seattle’s average daily electricity use and would result in power consumption ten times greater than the city’s existing 30 facilities. The scale of the proposed expansion has drawn sharp criticism from tech workers who argue that the current trajectory ignores the tangible costs of water, energy, and noise pollution.
Liesl Wigand, an Amazon senior software engineer and member of Amazon Employees for Climate Justice, testified that the industry’s approach prioritises growth over resource management. She described an "all-costs-justified AI buildout" culture that permeates the tech sector, noting that companies have failed to deliver on previous promises regarding renewable energy, battery storage, and closed-loop cooling systems. Wigand urged the council to set strict terms to prevent what she termed "Big Tech" from compromising the city’s sustainability.
Other engineers highlighted the need for greater transparency and worker protections. Patrick Schloesser, an Amazon software engineer, called for mandatory public reporting of resource usage and the establishment of worker-led safety committees to monitor AI risks. He also pointed to a stark contrast in corporate priorities, noting that while Amazon has spent $200 billion on capital expenditures largely earmarked for AI and data centres, it has simultaneously laid off 30,000 corporate employees over the past eight months.
The push for a moratorium mirrors broader regulatory trends, with New York’s state legislature recently voting for a similar one-year ban on new large-scale data centres, a measure now awaiting the governor’s signature. In Seattle, residents have also cited a worsening housing affordability crisis and a marked increase in homelessness since 2024 as reasons to pause industrial development. The council’s decision will determine whether the city can leverage this pause to negotiate better terms for infrastructure that benefits the wider community.
