While residents pack council chambers and submit letters, a quieter story has been unfolding at the provincial level — one Albertas government would prefer you didnt see.
Alberta data centres are being fast-tracked through the back door, and the public is being left out of the conversation entirely.
Environmental reviews waived for Wonder Valley
Kevin OLearys Wonder Valley project — a proposed $70 billion data centre complex — was quietly exempted from a full environmental impact assessment by Alberta Environment. No EIA required. No public notice. No consultation.
Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation Chief Sheldon Sunshine called the decision “ludicrous.”
“To say a $70 billion project does not warrant an environmental assessment defies common sense,” he said. “Our community will bear the impacts while the province fast-tracks it without asking a single hard question.”
Wonder Valley would consume staggering amounts of water and energy at a time when Albertas grid is already under strain — on land with significant ecological and cultural value. The provinces message was clear: no review needed.
Olds data centre also exempted
The same pattern played out for the Synapse Data Center project near Olds — a proposed $10 billion, 1 GW facility. Same exemption. Same silence. No environmental assessment. No public hearing. No questions asked.
Two projects. A combined $80 billion in proposed investment. Zero environmental assessments.
Grid speculation: A new kind of land grab
It is not just environmental reviews being waived. The way Alberta allocates grid access has been flipped — and early speculators are cashing in.
Kalina Distributed Power secured 180 MW of grid allocation for what one observer described as “basically nothing.” They had no intention of building anything. They turned around and sold that capacity to Greenlight/Pembina for $18 million.
A company secured access to a public resource — the electrical grid — and flipped it for $18 million in pure profit without building a single kilowatt of generation or storage. The grid is a public good. Selling access for windfall private profits with zero public benefit is not a market — it is a giveaway.
No cumulative impact assessment
The Alberta Utilities Commission currently has over 22 GW of data centre projects in its pipeline. Albertas entire existing generating capacity is roughly 17 GW.
The province is considering doubling its electrical load — without a single cumulative impact assessment.
The Tyees Andrew Nikiforuk did the math: 68 million tonnes of CO2, 7+ billion litres of water consumed annually, and 5,000 hectares of land converted to industrial use. Real impacts on Albertas climate, water tables, and farmland. No coordinated assessment of what 22+ GW of development means for any of it.
Other premiers see the problem
Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew has looked at the same model and rejected it. He called the data centre rush “a big threat to the environment and not much benefit to the economy.”
If Manitoba can see the danger, why cannot Alberta?
What this means for you
This provincial story matters because the decisions in Edmonton affect your community. When environmental assessments are waived and grid capacity is sold to speculators, there are fewer checks on developers — and fewer opportunities for residents to have their say.
The fight over data centres is not just about zoning bylaws. It is about whether Albertas government will continue to short-circuit the safeguards that protect communities, water, and the climate.
Learn more at The Facts and find out how you can make a difference at Get Involved. Your voice matters — especially when the province is trying to ensure you do not get a say.