{
  "id": 16096394,
  "title": "Google just cut down 250,000 trees for AI data centers — and now it's facing a major backlash",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/22/google-just-cut-down-250-000-trees-for-ai-data-centers-and-now-its",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-22T19:36:22.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Tom's Guide",
    "slug": "tom-s-guide",
    "url": "https://www.tomsguide.com/ai/google-just-cut-down-250-000-trees-for-ai-data-centers-and-now-its-facing-a-major-backlash"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Google's ambitious AI expansion in Finland has ignited a significant environmental backlash. The company's planned data center sites in Muhos and Otanmäki have led to the felling of an estimated 400,000 trees, an area larger than 450 American football fields. Finnish authorities have halted construction at the Muhos site while mandatory environmental impact assessments are carried out. The controversy highlights the environmental cost of the AI boom, as major tech companies race to build the infrastructure needed to power advanced AI models.",
  "summary": "Google cleared 250,000 trees in Finland to build AI data centers, sparking environmental backlash and raising concerns about AI's growing footprint.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}