Leger poll finds Canadian concern over AI data-centre costs and environmental impact
A Leger online survey of 1,505 Canadians conducted July 10–13 found that 81% of respondents were concerned AI data centres could raise household electricity bills and 79% were concerned about environmental effects. Views on building AI data centres in respondents' provinces were nearly split, while support for facilities tied to Canadian data sovereignty was higher than opposition. Because the survey used an online panel rather than a random sample, it cannot be assigned a conventional margin of error. For practitioners, the results show why power costs, water use, grid upgrades and local reporting are business constraints for AI infrastructure projects.
What the survey found
Leger surveyed 1,505 Canadian adults online from July 10 to July 13 about AI data centres. Its published results show broad concern about electricity prices and environmental impact, alongside more divided views about new construction.
- •81% of respondents were concerned that data centres could raise household electricity bills.
- •79% were concerned about environmental effects, including electricity and water consumption and greenhouse-gas emissions.
- •44% said they would support AI data centres being built in their province, while 42% would oppose them.
- •46% characterized facilities supporting Canadian-based AI services as a good thing, compared with 37% who called them a bad thing.
Canadian Press reporting published by National Observer independently describes the survey and quotes Leger on the divided opinion around local construction.
How to interpret the numbers
Leger used an online panel. As the Canadian Research Insights Council notes, non-probability online surveys cannot be assigned a conventional margin of error because participants are not selected through random sampling. The percentages describe this surveyed group and should not be presented as a precise population estimate.
| Signal | Practical question for infrastructure teams |
|---|---|
| Concern about household bills | Who pays for generation, interconnection and grid upgrades? |
| Concern about water and emissions | What cooling and energy disclosures will communities receive? |
| Split local support | How will projects address siting and community-benefit expectations? |
| Interest in data sovereignty | Which workloads and data remain under Canadian jurisdiction? |
LDS assessment
For practitioners, public acceptance is not separate from AI capacity planning. Electricity procurement, interconnection timelines, cooling design and local permitting can determine where compute is built and how much it costs. A technically viable facility may still face delay if developers cannot explain load growth, water intensity or cost allocation.
The combination of data-sovereignty support and local hesitation is particularly important. Policymakers may want domestic AI capacity while residents remain concerned about its local resource burden. Credible project evaluation therefore needs auditable forecasts for energy, water, emissions, grid upgrades and community costs rather than only headline compute capacity.
The poll does not establish that any specific project will be approved or rejected. It provides a current signal about the issues Canadian respondents want addressed.
Key Points
- 1Leger's online survey found broad concern about electricity prices and environmental effects from AI data centres.
- 2Respondents were nearly split on construction in their province, while support for Canadian data sovereignty was higher than opposition.
- 3The non-probability online survey cannot be assigned a conventional margin of error.
Scoring Rationale
The survey does not announce a project or policy change, but it documents public concerns that can influence AI data-centre siting, grid costs and transparency requirements in Canada.
Sources
Primary source and supporting public references used for this report.
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