Well before its required environmental review was complete, Google began clearing roughly 300 hectares of forest in Finland for a new AI data center campus, according to TechSpot. That area is equivalent to about 420 football fields. The project is run locally by Tuike Finland Oy (TFO), Google's Finnish subsidiary, which is investing €13 billion (about 44 billion TND) in new AI-focused infrastructure.
The case surfaced last month when Finland's Permit and Supervision Agency, known as LVV (Lupa- ja valvontavirasto), asked TFO to explain its actions, as reported by TechSpot. Google maintains that the clearing complied with Finnish laws and that the site was surveyed before work began. Finland's regulator says the environmental review came too late. The outcome could slow or suspend construction, at a time when AI data center projects are already facing delays in the US and elsewhere.
Google Finland data center: the forest clearing dispute
The LVV opened its inquiry after public reports indicated that around 300 hectares had already been cleared before the project's environmental impact could be properly assessed. In theory, TFO is supposed to operate in an environmentally friendly manner, with specific commitments covering energy sustainability, job creation and support for the local environment.
Google argues that the land was surveyed before the bulldozers moved in, so that no high-value environmental areas would be damaged. Hanna Halmeenpää, chair of the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation, disputes that account. She told TechSpot that satellite imagery shows areas that should have been protected have already been leveled. She is asking the LVV to halt the entire construction site so authorities can determine whether Google tried to clear the forest without first obtaining formal approval.
According to TechSpot, the work could now be suspended. Finland is one of the highest-rated countries in the world for environmental protection standards. Large data center buildouts carry a significant environmental cost in both land consumption and power requirements, and communities are increasingly voicing dissatisfaction with the unchecked expansion of Big Tech's AI infrastructure.
