Data centers' water use threatens freshwater supplies and communities

Miguel Yañez-Barnuevo reports that rapid expansion of data centers — especially AI-focused facilities — is increasing freshwater withdrawals and putting nearby communities and water systems at risk.

• Main announcement: Data center water demand is rising with energy and AI growth: individual large facilities can use up to 5 million gallons per day (≈1.8 billion gallons per year), U.S. data centers numbered 5,426 and consumed 163.7 billion gallons annually (2021); a federal report estimated ~211 billion gallons indirect water consumption from electricity in 2023. The article documents sources of water demand (on-site cooling, power-plant water use, chip manufacturing) and links this rise to higher chip densities and AI workloads.
• Background and technical details: The piece explains water accounting via WUE (Water Usage Effectiveness) (average ~1.9 liters/kWh; “0” is ideal), notes ~80% of withdrawn water typically evaporates, and describes cooling options (closed-loop, free cooling, air cooling, direct-to-chip and immersion cooling) and supply options (recycled/gray water vs. blue freshwater). It cites regional impacts (Northern Virginia: ~300 data centers; Loudoun County used ~900 million gallons in 2023) and sector-wide forecasts (data centers could use up to 1,050 TWh of electricity by 2030).