America's data centers are thirsty. Rural towns are paying the price
Fortune • • business
Key Points:
- Data center developers in water-stressed U.S. communities, including Georgia and Arizona, have been found using water without authorization, often discovered through resident complaints about low water pressure or dust control.
- U.S. data centers consumed 17.4 billion gallons of water in 2023, with projections up to 73 billion gallons by 2028, raising concerns about sustainability amid worsening droughts, especially in states like Texas and Georgia.
- In Fayette County, Georgia, QTS’s data center consumed over 29 million gallons during construction due to a metering error, sparking local complaints despite the company’s claim of using closed-loop cooling and denying impact on water pressure.
- In Tucson, Arizona, a developer used approximately 650,000 gallons of city water for dust control without proper authorization, leading to city demands for water replacement and a violation notice for inadequate dust control measures.
- Growing conflicts over data center water use have led over 50 U.S. cities to enact bans or moratoria on new data center construction, highlighting tensions between industrial growth and water resource management.