A lawsuit in Brazil asks that a data center under construction by ByteDance, the TikTok owner, stop work and stay closed until a fresh environmental review is done. The site is in the northeast part of the country.
The case was filed by the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Public Defender’s Office. They are challenging a project in Caucaia, Ceará. Their filing says the plan was cleared without enough checks on how it could affect nearby water and energy use.
ByteDance is calling this its first data center in Latin America. The company expects it to start running in 2027.
In the lawsuit, the groups claim the authorities relied on a Simplified Environmental Report. They say a full Environmental Impact Assessment should have been required, along with the public disclosure that usually comes with it. The filing also says local communities were not given a fair chance to take part in the approval process.
The project was announced with an investment figure of 200 billion reais, about $36 billion. It will be built inside the Pecém Industrial and Port Complex. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was present at a launch event tied to the plan in November 2025.
Indigenous Anacé leaders and civil society groups have raised concerns about the project since 2025, citing alleged gaps in the licensing documentation and the potential effects of large-scale water and energy consumption in a region frequently affected by drought and water shortages.
The prosecutors and public defenders are seeking free, prior and informed consultation with the Anacé and other traditional communities, as well as the completion of the full environmental studies. They are also calling for greater transparency and monitoring of the facility’s water and electricity use.
Consumer rights group Idec, the Terramar Institute, the Public Policy and Internet Laboratory and Recife-based technology law group IP.rec support the legal action and have called for construction to be suspended immediately. They warned that continuing the work could entrench environmental and territorial damage before the alleged licensing failures are addressed.
The groups said talks with Indigenous communities and public hearings are different steps. They also said the steps work together, so both should happen. They added that communities that may be affected must be able to shape the outcome. They noted this should include the right to oppose the project.
The dispute comes after a June 2026 decision in Brazil by Conama, the National Environmental Council. That decision listed data centers as projects that could have major social and environmental effects. It also asked officials not to rely on quick licensing steps for these sites when the right safeguards are not in place.
The same groups want checks on the quick licensing process. They said similar steps were used for other data-center plans in Brazil.
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