Data center chemical safety should be considered from the earliest project stages

There are several data center projects in different stages across Finland – some are already under construction, while others are awaiting investment decisions before moving forward. Yet data center chemical safety has received relatively little attention in public discussion, even though it is an essential part of safe and compliant project delivery.

Public debate often focuses on the environmental impacts of data centers and their electricity demand, but chemical safety requirements affecting a data center must also be identified early. Just like industrial facilities that handle and store hazardous chemicals, data centers are also subject to chemical safety requirements.

When selecting a site for a data center, chemical safety requirements should be taken into account from an early stage. In our previously published blog post on siting industrial facilities, we outlined key principles for assessing location suitability. The same principles also apply to data centers: potential accident impact zones must be assessed, and the site should be chosen so that operations do not pose a risk to nearby sensitive receptors, critical infrastructure, or the activities of other operators.

From a data center chemical safety perspective, site selection can be supported by a major accident hazard assessment that identifies location-specific requirements, possible constraints and the risks arising from the planned operations.

At the start of the project, it is also necessary to determine whether a chemical safety permit is required based on the quantities of hazardous chemicals handled and stored on site, as well as their CLP hazard classifications.

In data centers, the need for a chemical safety permit is often driven in particular by backup fuel, as operators prepare for potential power outages with standby generators as part of business continuity and resilience planning. The scope of operations is also affected by other hazardous chemicals used in data centers, such as refrigerants and water treatment chemicals. In other words, chemical safety in a data center is not limited to fuels alone; the overall situation must be assessed case by case.

Even if the threshold for a chemical safety permit is not met, small-scale handling and storage of chemicals in a data center may still require a notification to the regional rescue authority.

Defining the scope of operations, assessing site suitability and clarifying chemical safety requirements help data center projects progress more smoothly and make it easier to anticipate costs, schedules and authority processes. Early assessment also reduces the risk that chemical safety requirements emerge too late in the project.

At Sweco, we help clients identify chemical safety requirements related to data center projects and assess their implications for project planning, siting and permitting. Our aim is to support smooth project progress in line with legal requirements and practical safety considerations.

Author: Kirsi Wolczkiewicz, Specialist in chemical and product safetety