Finland investigates Google over 300 hectares of forest cleared for data center

Finnish authorities are investigating a Google-owned company over forest clearing tied to its planned data centers. At issue are more than 300 hectares of trees felled at a site in Muhos, in northern Finland. What happened in Muhos The company under scrutiny is Tuike Finland Oy, a local project company owned by Google. Authorities are looking into whether it potentially breached environmental regulations during clearing work for new data center developments in Muhos and Kajaani. The probe traces back to the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation. The group alerted authorities and lodged a complaint in September 2026. Clearing at the Muhos site, located in Leppiniemi, began in March 2026. More than 300 hectares were cleared in total. That figure matters because of a legal tripwire. Finnish law requires an environmental impact assessment, known locally as YVA and internationally as an EIA, before permanent clear-cutting that exceeds 200 hectares. In late April 2026, the company requested an exemption from the assessment requirement. In May 2026, the project moved into a formal EIA process. Tree felling, however, reportedly kept going into the summer. Clearing continued after the...