Google ordered to halt work on Finland data center after illegally clearing 250,000 trees

JUST IN: Google forced to halt work in Finland after illegally clearing 250,000 trees for a new data center, according to the Guardian.

Every tree that occupied the 815-acre site just a few months ago is now gone.

The Finnish Licensing and Supervision Authority (LVV) has ordered Google to stop work on the Muhos and Otanmäki sites after it cut down the trees before the environmental impact assessment was completed.

Google’s Finland manager, Antti Järvinen, has apologized but says they were acting on “the best understanding we had of the legislation at the time.”

Muhos and Otanmäki are a $17 billion Google AI project.

President Trump has criticized Google for taking the projects overseas instead of investing in the United States.