Residents are furious about plans to build a massive data centre that would dwarf their idyllic Devon town.

Locals in Great Torrington are 'up in arms' about the proposed AI campus, which could cover 850 acres of countryside with 1720 battery containers.

The company behind the planned data centre, Xlinks, claims that the site will create between 600-1200 jobs upon completion and contribute £3.6billion to the UK's economy.

But residents are concerned that the campus - located between Great Torrington, Huntshaw and Weare Gifford - will 'destroy' the town and surrounding landscape if it is built.

More than 25,500 people have signed a petition launched by community group, Leave Devon Alone, for the gargantuan AI campus to be scrapped.

Matt Whittaker, a former Torrington Town Hall trustee, attended the public meeting held for locals on June 25, the day the plans were announced.

He told the Mail: 'We know that this data centre cannot go here but we are going to prove it.

'Everyone is up in arms but we are doing it in an intelligent way. We are driven by emotion but we are not distracted by our hearts. It won't just destroy the town, it's far bigger than that.'

The 59-year-old voiced his qualms about the AI-generated image of the campus which does not accurately depict the true scale of the site.

The data centre campus could take up to 850 acres of land just one mile away from an idyllic Devon town

An early rendered illustration of what the Devon data centre could look like upon completion

Ange Wilson-Duffy, Matt Whittaker, Emily Clark \& Peter Laing are furious about the proposed data centre

'There's 112 containers in the image,' he said, 'but there will actually be more than 2300 battery containers one and a half a mile from a school with a cooling system on the side of each one screaming at 65 decibels. How is that healthy?'

The image is an early rendered illustration of what the data centre could look like and is 'not reflective of either the site or the scheme,' according to Xlinks.

Mr Whittaker pointed out that the initial map outlines of the data centre impeded on a farmer's land who had not been approached by Xlinks.

The firm has since amended the proposed map plans but he said it is a deeply troubling mistake to make.

'They can't draw a map and it is incredibly inaccurate. Would you trust a multimillion-pound project with a company that can't read a map or count containers? It's farcical.'

Since the meeting, the market town has banded together against the plans which were announced by leaflets posted through residents' doors on June 25.

Niamh Shearing, co-founder of Leave Devon Alone, said it was no surprise that 'proposals of this scale' would seriously concern members of the public and Great Torrington residents.

'In just a matter of weeks, more than 25,000 people have signed our petition opposing the proposal, our campaign has reached over 500,000 people, and we've received more than 300 detailed signed statements from local residents explaining their concerns.

The company behind the planned data centre, Xlinks, could build a data centre that takes up to 850 acres

The amended map outlining the planned campus which would be one mile away from Great Torrington in Devon

The residents from Great Torrington, located one mile to the south of the proposed site are up in arms against the AI campus

'The proposed AI Data Centre and Battery Energy Storage System would cover more than 800 acres of countryside near Great Torrington, making it one of the largest industrial developments ever proposed in North Devon.

Xlinks originally scheduled a public consultation period for the plans from July 14-17 which has now been pushed back three months.

But Ms Shearing said locals found this decision both 'disappointing' and 'cowardly'.

She said: 'The decision to postpone the advertised public consultation days until September, after the law was changed around public consultation has only increased the determination of local people to ensure their voices are heard.

'Residents had prepared to attend those events, ask questions and engage directly with the company, and many are disappointed and feel it was cowardly that this opportunity has been delayed.'

The community group co-founder added that residents are particularly worried about the data centres 'permanent impact on our countryside, farming, wildlife, infrastructure and the character of our communities.'

An area of concern, Andrew Giles, Chair of the Torrington Conservators, a group who look after the common land, echoed.

While the data centre does not pose a direct threat on Torrington Commons, Mr Giles said the campus would impact the River Torridge.

Former Torrington Town Hall trustee, Matt Whittaker, (far-right) said the data centre would destroy the town

The proposed data centre would be built between Great Torrington, Huntshaw and Wear Gifford

Xlinks claims the data centre will create 600-1200 jobs and contribute £3.6billion to the economy

'If they take the water and put it back in again it will be contaminated,' he said.

'Everybody is talking about it. Everybody is against it, it is the main talking point.'

The chairman was also sceptical of the 600-1200 permanent jobs Xlinks claims the data centre will create.

'There's not really a jobs problem in the area, there's not a lot of unemployment in the area because most people have finished work. And people have said that data centres run on automation and AI.'

Xlinks currently holds a land option for up to 850 acres, but the current layout uses around a third of that land.

It said that the majority of the site would be used for environmental measures and public open spaces including woodland.

An Xlinks spokesperson said the AI image is 'clearly marked by us whenever used as illustrative, only of how this type of development might look in a rural landscape and not reflective of either the site or the scheme.

The spokesperson continued: 'There will be 1720 containerised battery units - the final number and layout will be confirmed through the detailed design and planning process, with full details set out in the planning application.

'On noise, this [65 decibels] is not a figure we are familiar with - the campus will not create noise outside its boundaries: there would be strict limits set as part of the planning process, which would be enforced across the campus's lifetime.

'We will also design in noise buffers, like landscaping and trees, and noise will be monitored to ensure it doesn't breach limits.'

In response to the data centre's use of water, the spokesperson said: 'On water, the scheme will not be connected into local waterways.

'We plan for the site to be self-sufficient, recirculating water to absorb heat (like a car radiator), tupped up from collected rainwater.

'There will be no discharge into the Torridge or any other waterway.'

And answering questions about the amount of jobs Xlinks claims the campus will create, the spokesperson added: 'AI data centres host modelling work and need dedicated 24-hr teams to ensure they run reliably.

'Alongside the 650 to 1,200 permanent jobs, 2,000 to 3,500 jobs will be created in construction, with many more jobs created in the supply chain.'

The firm said it extended the public consultation period 'to meet with the local community on a more informal basis' and 'to hear questions and concerns they might have.'