What Chile’s Data Centre Expansion Reveals About The Future Of Environmental And Social Risk Management

The rapid expansion of AI and cloud computing is driving unprecedented investment in data centre infrastructure worldwide. At the same time, growing scrutiny of these facilities is exposing the limitations of traditional approaches to environmental and social risk assessment. Instead, organizations may need to adopt more dynamic, data-driven approaches to environmental and social risk management throughout the entire life cycle of major infrastructure projects.

Yesterday’s assumptions may not fit tomorrow’s risks

In May 2026, a Chilean court rejected appeals against Amazon Web Services’s proposed data centre development near Santiago, allowing the project to proceed despite protests by residents and environmental groups regarding water usage, biodiversity impacts and future infrastructure requirements. The decision comes amid growing scrutiny of data centre expansion in Chile, where prolonged drought conditions have intensified concerns about resource availability and environmental resilience.

This situation illustrates a broader challenge facing developers of large-scale infrastructure. Traditional environmental impact assessments often rely on historical data and static assumptions that may not adequately capture changing environmental conditions, cumulative impacts or evolving community concerns. As climate risks intensify and social expectations shift, organizations increasingly need assessments that can adapt alongside changing operating conditions.

Continuous monitoring is replacing one-time assessments

Emerging research suggests that the environmental impacts of data centres extend beyond water consumption. Researchers at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health estimated that air pollution associated with a proposed data centre in northern Virginia could result in up to $99 million in annual health damages, driven primarily by premature deaths as well as increased hospital admissions, asthma-related health concerns and lost productivity. These findings highlight how indirect environmental impacts can evolve alongside infrastructure growth, reinforcing the need for continuous monitoring of emissions, energy use and community health indicators rather than relying solely on pre-construction assessments.

Advances in environmental monitoring technologies offer a potential path forwards. Platforms such as Sphera and Wolters Kluwer Enablon are increasingly helping firms consolidate environmental, health, safety and sustainability data, enabling more continuous monitoring of operational risks and environmental performance across complex infrastructure projects. For example, real-time monitoring of water availability, biodiversity indicators, air quality and occupational health risks can enable earlier detection of emerging risks, allowing mitigation strategies to be implemented proactively rather than reactively.

For EHS and sustainability leaders, the lesson extends beyond data centres. As organizations continue to invest in large-scale infrastructure projects to support digital transformation and AI adoption, risk management must evolve from a periodic compliance exercise into a continuous, data-driven capability that strengthens both operational resilience and the social licence to operate.

To learn more about the technologies enabling proactive EHS management, explore the latest research available on the Verdantix research portal.