Thank you for taking the time to read and potentially sign this petition.

I have lived in the area my whole life, as have my parents and grandparents and we all love Epping Forest. What a privilege to have such incredible beauty and nature on your doorstep.

Much of the Forest is of national and international conservation importance with two-thirds of it being designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Special Area of Conservation (SAC). It contains 55,000 ancient trees, more than anywhere else in UK, many dating back over 1000 years. Making them some of the oldest living beings in Europe. Epping Forest is the only place in UK with 4 different sorts of habitat – ancient woodland, heathland, grassland and wetland. Aswell as Iron Age mounds. The Forest is home to 10 specie of bat, all endangered, 28 specie of butterfly, 9 specie of reptile and amphibian and 1,500 specie of fungi, including the rarest in Europe. Aswell as animals we all know and love – squirrels, deer, muntjac, foxes, rabbits, owls and many other birds of prey.

But that nature is now under serious threat. Two huge, hyperscale AI Data Centres are planned for Epping Forest – North Weald, (planning application EPF/0849/25) and Loughton (planning application EPF/1165/22)

How the Data Centres will Impact Local Residents

1/ Your electricity bills will skyrocket. Look at what is happening in the US and Ireland – some people’s bills have trebled to $600/ month. Data centres used 22% of Irelands total electricity last year, more than all urban homes combined and increased household bills (The Guardian 28th May 2026).

2/ You will have low or no water pressure, see planning application EPF/1165/22 for Loughton site. They need your drinking water to stay cool, millions of gallons of it. Just as Thames Water have told us to stop using hose pipes!  (30th May 2026)

3/ Your air will be more polluted. Google underestimated their air pollution projections by 500% re planning application EPF/0849/25 North Weald site. (The Guardian 9th May 2026)

4/ You will be exposed to noise pollution, a constant hum, which cannot be contained and travels for miles. This is detrimental to your health – cardiovascular disease, hypertension and blood disorders to name a few. (Both planning applications contain a lot of information concerning noise. Neither mention infra sound/ low frequency sound which is below our hearing levels but still has an impact on our bodies)

5/ You will be exposed to light pollution. Hyperscale facilities require all-night lighting that disrupts the natural (circadian) rhythms of the body, including melatonin production (the hormone that regulates sleep) and sleep-wake cycles.

6/ If you live within 6/7 miles of these data centres, you will experience an increase in temperature of minimum 3.6°F due to heat dumped into the air – heat islands (Andrea Marinoni, Cambridge University 21st March 2026).

7/ Due to the above, the value of your home will plummet.

8/ In the long term, AI will take your jobs and jobs from your children

The Impact on the Forest and all the creatures living there

1/ Noise pollution affects us, but imagine the impact on kites, buzzards and other raptors who’s hearing is 8-10 times more powerful than ours? Squirrels have more than double our hearing capacity as well as low frequency hearing. Deer can detect ultra sonic sounds. Butterflies are sensitive to low pitched noise. Rabbits can hear sounds 2 miles away. Foxes can detect noise far exceeding ours, like a vole rustling over 100 feet away. If you ride or own horses, you will know that horses can hear sound up to 4 km away.

2/ Light pollution disturbs migration patterns and habitat development among birds, insects and butterflies, bats, and other mammals. It disrupts breeding and feeding and daily or seasonal rhythms - chicks hatch before their food source is available.

3/ The increase in temperature, heat island effect, would cover the whole of the forest from North Weald to Loughton and beyond. This will fundamentally alter the microclimate of the forest and have a devastating, detrimental effect on all flora and fauna.

ACTION!

Epping Forest is our Rainforest and urgently needs our protection. It used to cover 230 square miles; we must safeguard the little that is left for future generations. Before it is too late.

There has been no democratic input, no input from the people who will be affected by these data centres.

Why should a handful of unelected Tech oligarchs determine the future of OUR Forest and all who live here? Our communities matter more than corporate greed.

Tell Steve Reed who will have final sign off on this planning now.

Email: steve.reed.mp@parliament.uk

Please sign this petition and let’s get our voices heard.

PEOPLE UNITED WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED!