Finnish police have launched a criminal investigation into suspected breaches of environmental law at the construction site of a planned Google data centre.
The Oulu Police Department said on Thursday it had launched an investigation into Google’s Finnish subsidiary, Tuike, over work conducted in Muhos in northern Finland.
Tuike cleared about 330 hectares of forest in Muhos and nearly 200 hectares at a second site in Kajaani before mandatory environmental impact assessments were completed.
Google recently announced a US$15 billion ($21 billion) investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure in Finland, described by the company as its largest investment in Europe.
The clear cutting has seen the US tech giant’s plans mired in controversy, sparking criticism from citizens concerned about their impact.
How did the logging unfold?
Documents seen by Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat (HS) revealed that logging at the Muhos site began in March and continued for months.
Finland’s Supervisory Agency (LVV) responded to correspondence from Tuike in May, saying environmental impact assessments had to be completed before logging could begin.
In September, Google announced its plans to invest $21 billion over two years to build data centres in Finland.
A week later, Finnish news agency STT reported on allegations by an environmental organisation that Google had cleared forest illegally at the Muhos and Kajaani sites.
