The Activist Behind the Legend Has a New Fight
Erin Brockovich — the legal clerk turned environmental crusader whose real-life story became an Oscar-winning Hollywood film — has a new target in her crosshairs: artificial intelligence data centres.
Brockovich has launched a new website that maps the rapid proliferation of AI data centres across the United States and invites residents living near these facilities to share their environmental and health concerns. The project marks a significant expansion of her decades-long advocacy work into one of the fastest-growing industries on the planet.
Why Data Centres Are Under the Microscope
AI data centres are massive, power-hungry facilities that train and run the large language models and machine learning systems underpinning tools like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and countless enterprise applications. As demand for AI services explodes globally, so does the need for physical infrastructure to support it — and that infrastructure comes with real-world costs.
Critics have raised concerns about the enormous quantities of water these facilities consume for cooling, their significant electricity demands (which can strain local grids and push up emissions), and the noise and industrial footprint they introduce into communities. These are exactly the kinds of concerns Brockovich built her career fighting — corporate expansion that affects everyday people without adequate public accountability.
A Canadian Conversation Worth Having
While Brockovich's new project focuses on the U.S., the questions she's raising resonate strongly north of the border. Canada has seen substantial growth in data centre investment, with major facilities operating or under development in Ontario, Quebec, and Alberta — drawn by the country's cooler climate, relatively stable electricity supply, and available land.
For Canadians, especially those in regions where tech infrastructure is expanding, the issues are the same: water usage, energy consumption, zoning decisions made without community input, and the long-term environmental impact on local watersheds and power grids.
Brockovich's model — crowd-sourced mapping combined with grassroots reporting — could serve as a template for Canadian advocates who want to track and document the footprint of this fast-moving industry before oversight catches up.
The Broader Stakes of the AI Boom
The timing of Brockovich's project isn't accidental. Governments and corporations are pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into AI infrastructure globally, often moving faster than regulators can respond. Environmental groups and community organizations have struggled to get ahead of development decisions that can lock in high-energy, high-water-use facilities for decades.
By bringing her name recognition and track record to the issue, Brockovich is lending credibility and visibility to concerns that technical complexity has sometimes kept out of the mainstream conversation.
For anyone who followed her original fight against Pacific Gas & Electric — where she helped win a landmark $333 million settlement for residents exposed to contaminated groundwater — the message is familiar: corporate growth shouldn't come at the expense of the communities hosting it.
Her new website invites residents across North America to document what they're seeing in their own backyards, creating a living record of the data centre boom and its on-the-ground impact.
Source: CBC Top Stories / CBC News
