Chief Minister Jon Stanhope said yesterday the ACT Government would respond to residents' concerns with an independent assessment.

But he said the debate about the proposed facility in Tuggeranong needed ''some perspective''.

''It's quite likely on advice available to me that the emissions from a gas heater in an individual house are far greater than the emissions from the generators associated with the data centre,'' he said.

Mr Stanhope said emissions would be well below accepted standards.

''Significantly below. I'm advised they're [about] 30 to 40 per cent below world health standards,'' he said.

Residents' concerns about emissions of nitrogen dioxide from the $1billion proposal led the Government to form a steering group to assess the health effects.

Public health physician Professor Anthony Capon will lead the group.

He will be joined tonight by community advocate Anne Cahill Lambert, Monash University professor Helen Keleher and the ACT's chief health officer, Dr Charles Guest.

Professor Capon said community input was an essential part of the assessment.

''There is significant community concern about the proposed computer data centre and gas-fired power station and the community has a right to have those concerns properly assessed,'' he said.

He said issues to be examined by the committee would include the potential effect of emissions on residents' health.

''The assessment will form part of the government decision-making process.

''We will make firm recommendations, but it remains a government decision.''

Mr Capon said the public forum would inform the community about how the assessment would work.

He said it would start the dialogue between the group working on the assessment and the public.

''The following week we will hold a more technical workshop for people who want to comb through the detail of the assessment and examine the proposal more closely,'' he said.

Reports on the community forum and technical workshop will be incorporated into the assessment and provided to the Government.

The group is scheduled to deliver its recommendations to Health Minister Katy Gallagher by August 15.

The community forum will be held at the Vikings Club, on the corner of Athlon Drive and Rowland Rees Crescent, Greenway, from 5.30 to 7.30 this evening.