Environmental movement Extinction Rebellion (XR) has protested a Microsoft data center project in Amsterdam by pelting it with acid-filled balloons.
The organization stated that the demonstration was held overnight on July 15 to 16, in which the “rebels” threw water balloons filled with “hydrogen peroxide, acetic acid, salt, and acrylic paint over the fence onto the concrete. This acidic mixture attacks concrete, and the hydrogen peroxide causes steel to rust faster.”
XR Extinction Rebellion
– Extinction Rebellion
According to XR, the demonstration is signaling that the group is joining the Geef Tegengas – a Dutch climate and justice collective – campaign against the data center located near Sloterdijk Station.
XR spokesperson Martijn Dekker said: “The fight against data centers clearly shows how ordinary people unite against the power of big capital. The climate and ecological crisis cannot be viewed in isolation from Israel’s genocide of the Palestinians or the fight against the destructive effects of AI.
“These abuses originate from the same few mega-rich, the same large corporations. We must join forces and resist the anti-democratic power of this small group of the very wealthiest. Stopping the construction of this data center is a necessary step in that regard.”
The data center in question is being developed by Pure DC and will reportedly be leased to Microsoft. The data center will be split into three data halls reaching heights of 85m, and will offer 78MW of capacity. Microsoft is set to be a customer of Pure DC in Finland also.
According to a report from NRC regarding XR’s attack on the site, Pure DC and emergency responders confirmed balloons were thrown at the site, but Pure DC said that it had no impact on construction and the company would seek legal action against those responsible.
In a statement to DCD, Pure DC added: “Yesterday morning, balloons were thrown over the perimeter fence of Pure DC’s Amsterdam site which, protestors claim, contained corrosive chemicals. While we have not yet tested the substances to independently verify these claims, if true, these actions could have seriously injured protestors or workers and are irresponsible and dangerous. The Amsterdam Police have been informed and are investigating the matter. On this occasion there has been no damage, and no delay to construction, but activities of this nature would amount to serious criminal damage, for which we would pursue prosecution to the fullest extent of the law
XR told NRC that it planned similar attacks at other data centers.
Along with concerns about the power consumption of the data center, water usage, and low frequency noise pollution which XR said “greatly bothers both humans and other animals,” the attack was also motivated by Microsoft’s work with Israel, which has previously seen protests from Geef Tegengas when activities demonstrated on the roof of a data center in the Netherlands stating that they were “calling on all employees of the data center to lay down their work until all Israeli intelligence has been removed from the servers.”
XR added: “Such data centers are superfluous. They are mostly deployed for AI purposes, and although AI has some meaningful applications, the majority of them are undesirable: jobs are lost, and the work of artists and others is shamelessly stolen to generate AI content.”#