Kevin O'Leary and O'Leary Digital released updated information on water use and project timelines for the proposed Wonder Valley AI data center campus.
The disclosure comes ahead of a public open house scheduled for Thursday. This update aims to address community concerns and provide stakeholders with specific details on how the massive infrastructure project will impact local resources.
The proposed site is located in the Municipal District of Greenview, approximately 40 kilometres [1] south of Grande Prairie, Alberta. According to project descriptions, the campus would occupy thousands of hectares [2] of land to accommodate the AI infrastructure.
O'Leary Digital issued the updated data to inform the public before the open house event. The information focuses on the schedule of development and the specific requirements for water usage, which are critical factors for data center cooling and operation.
While the project has been exempt from a provincial environmental impact assessment, the developers still require various permits before construction can begin. The company intends to use the upcoming meeting to field questions regarding these regulatory requirements and the project's footprint.
Local stakeholders have raised questions about the scale of the development. The project's size and its exemption from certain provincial environmental reviews have made the transparency of water usage and timeline data a focal point for residents in the Greenview area.
“The project would occupy thousands of hectares of land”
The release of water and timeline data reflects the tension between rapid AI infrastructure expansion and local environmental stewardship. By providing these details before a public forum, O'Leary Digital is attempting to mitigate community opposition and navigate the permit process despite the project's exemption from a full provincial environmental impact assessment.
