This article raises so many questions. Who is "Australia" in this context? Nobody wants data centres anywhere near them.
What is wrong with the proposed limitation that they provide their own renewable power? That seems like a very reasonable limitation to me. Economics 101: Increase demand and not supply, and prices increase. We'll all be paying more for power for these data centres we don't want.
What the hell are they proposing to do about water consumption? A data centre devoted to LLM (AI) infrastructure uses twice as much water as a regular data centre. Something like 15-20 megalitres per day. That's equivalent to something like 30,000 - 40,000 homes.

Are they trying to get these things built before everyone realises how much they are going to affect us all? It sure seems like it. This is exactly like a mining company proposing to build a mine in your neighbourhood. And should be subject to just as much scrutiny and planning that scenario would be.

Zero LLM data centres might be a little optimistic. We will likely need a couple. But careful planning is required to make them as sustainable and non-impactful to the environment as possible. They use the power of ~100,000 homes and the water of ~40,000. I do not want to be carrying that extra burden in my community.