Yellowhead County council recently gave first reading to a Land Use Bylaw amendment that would add data processing centres as a discretionary use in certain zones, and scheduled a public hearing on the matter.
Bylaw 04.26 defines a data processing centre as “a building, a dedicated space within a building, or a group of buildings used to house computer systems and associated infrastructure and components, such as telecommunications and storage systems for the digital transactions required for processing data.” Uses can include digital currency processing, centres for artificial intelligence, fungible tokens and blockchain transactions.
If passed, the bylaw would add these facilities as discretionary uses in Natural (ND), Rural (RD), Industrial (ID) and Commercial Districts (CD). Discretionary uses require approval by the development permit authority and may be subject to conditions. The addition also acknowledges that Alberta Utilities Commission rulings may impact the approval of these projects and the conditions they are subject to.
These changes need to be made for the county to even consider a development permit application for such a project. The county has reportedly received numerous inquiries for this type of project already.
The bylaw would also make a variety of housekeeping changes intended to clarify language and correct minor errors.
County residents can provide their thoughts on the matter at a public hearing on May 12.
