Big Tech plans to use lots more water. They just don't want the public to know.
Cooling alone can account for up to 40% of a data center’s total electricity consumption.
A major shift we’re seeing is the move from reliance on air-cooling systems to liquid cooling solutions.
Techniques like chilled water loops, direct-to-chip (cold plate) cooling, and immersion cooling are gaining popularity.
https://www.powermag.com/blog/the-overlooked-contributor-to-ais-climate-impact-cooling-fluids/
*The Detrimental Effects of Data Centers' Rising #WaterConsumption*
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👉Increasing #WaterConsumption by #DataCenters threatens #Habitats, #Agriculture, and drinking #water for low-income families👈
Even before the trend of water-cooling technology for data centers, an unsustainable, yet growing global population had been sucking the world dry from fresh water, in several cases even consuming...
*The Detrimental Effects of Data Centers' Rising #WaterConsumption*
(2/n)
👉...water that had been underground for millions of years. 1)
So much so, that even the Earth's axis has been affected.👈 2)
👉#DataCenters are severely and increasingly aggravating #Water scarcity.👈 3)
For one thing, through the rapid growth of...
1) #Acquifers:
https://mastodon.social/@HistoPol/111813528183188504
https://mastodon.social/@HistoPol/11204773648095498
2) #Axis: https://www.science.org/content/article/humanity-s-groundwater-pumping-has-altered-earth-s-tilt
*The Detrimental Effects of Data Centers' Rising #WaterConsumption*
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...the installed base.
For another, through inefficient #water use. 4)
A whopping 40%, however, are due to building in already #arid regions of the globe:
"#BusinessInsider found that 👉40% of the nation's planned and existing #DataCenters are in areas that the nonprofit #WorldResourcesInstitute, which focuses on...
3) #WaterConsumption by #DataCenters:
The information communication technology sector will experience huge growth over the coming years, with 29.3 billion devices expected online by 2030, up from 18.4 billion in 2018. To reliably support the online services used by these billions of users, data centres have been built around the world to provide the millions of servers they contain with access to power, cooling and internet connectivity. Whilst the energy consumption of these facilities regularly receives mainstream and academic coverage, analysis of their water consumption is scarce. Data centres consume water directly for cooling, in some cases 57% sourced from potable water, and indirectly through the water requirements of non-renewable electricity generation. Although in the USA, data centre water consumption (1.7 billion litres/day) is small compared to total water consumption (1218 billion litres/day), there are issues of transparency with less than a third of data centre operators measuring water consumption. This paper examines the water consumption of data centres, the measurement of that consumption, highlights the lack of data available to assess water efficiency, and discusses and where the industry is going in attempts to reduce future consumption.
*The Detrimental Effects of Data Centers' Rising #WaterConsumption*
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...#Sustainability research, has characterized as experiencing "extremely high" or "high" water scarcity.👈
The share is even larger, 43%, for the biggest centers, those that use 40 megawatt-hours or more of electricity each hour.
Two companies stood out in #BI's analysis as having the most #DataCenters in high or extremely high #water-stressed areas:
...
*The Detrimental Effects of Data Centers' Rising #WaterConsumption*
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...
4)
#Water Usage Effectiveness:
https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/cooling/a-guide-to-data-center-water-usage-effectiveness-wue-and-best-practices
...👉 #Amazon, with 81, and #Microsoft, with 23.
As a share of their data centers, Microsoft ranks first with 52% in such arid spots.👈" 5)
...
5) center locations in #arid regions:
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-ai-impacts-data-centers-water-data/
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-data-centers-are-deepening-the-water-crisis-2025-6?op=1
*The Detrimental Effects of Data Centers' Rising #WaterConsumption*
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...The devastating effects that occur, when #Multinationals such as #Nestlé or #Danone monopolize the #FreshWater supply, can be seen in many locations. 6)
👉In my view, #DataCenter operators need to be obliged not only to purchase #CarbonOffsetCredits.
A similar program needs to be developed for the #Conservation of the world's dwindling #FreshWater resources,👈
As a starting...
*The Detrimental Effects of Data Centers' Rising #WaterConsumption*
(7/n)
...point, two ideas come to mind:
1. Building #Saltwater #DesalinationPlants en par with the centers' #WaterConsumption.
2. "Mining" #Glaciers in regions where they are melting 7), in particular at the poles, and transporting that water to regions with #Arable lands for #Irrigation purposes...
6) #WaterMonopolization:
https://www.icirnigeria.org/how-nestle-nigeria-contaminates-water-supply-of-its-host-community-in-abuja/
Nestle’s water factory in Abaji pumps its effluents into the public stream of its host community, Manderegi that serves their domestic needs.
*The Detrimental Effects of Data Centers' Rising #WaterConsumption*
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...7) Melting #Glaciers:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03436-z
https://fediscience.org/@Ruth_Mottram/114529325386952028
//
Analysis of satellite stereo imagery uncovers two decades of mass change for all of Earth’s glaciers, revealing accelerated glacier shrinkage and regionally contrasting changes consistent with decadal climate variability.
👉Proposals for multibillion-dollar rate increases by #Utilities driven by expansion of #DatacCentres promoted by the #Trump administration👈"
A 🧵
*#Energy … on the credit card*
👉#Household #UtilityDebt is reaching crisis levels👈, jumping from $17.5bn in January 2023 to $21bn in June 2025 and forecast to climb as high as $25bn by the end of this year.
Currently, only 26 states and the District...
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/31/phoenix-heat-deaths
...of #Columbia have rules restricting some #UtilityShutoffs over the summer, and disconnections could hit 4m by the end of 2025, according to #Nevada... "
"...in #Arizona and across the country, private #Utilities have submitted 👉proposals for multibillion-dollar rate increases👈, in order to cover infrastructure upgrades, inflation and new #FossilFuel projects – 👉driven, at least partially, by the unchecked expansion of massive #Datacentres promoted by the #Trump
...administration.👈..."
"...👉A quarter of [#Maricopa] county's[, which includes #Phoenix, #AZ] indoor deaths took place in #RVs or #MobileHomes👈, a popular source of affordable housing, especially for retirees, but which are often poorly insulated and too rundown to qualify for #Weatherization programs.
The vast majority of those indoor heat victims had #AC at home, but the unit was broken in 70% of cases – while one in 10 had no #Electricity to run even a...
...fan,..."
"...she was unaware of the #LowIncomeHomeEnergyAssistanceProgram (#Liheap), the chronically underfunded federal program to help families pay their energy bills, which the #Trump administration proposed cutting after firing the entire workforce in April."
"👉As many as 60% of #American households live paycheck to paycheck, while one in three report forgoing basic necessities such as food or medicine to pay energy bills and avoid #Disconnection... 👈
👉...#Heat is the deadliest weather phenomenon in the #US and globally, killing almost half a million people worldwide each year👈, according to the #WorldHealthOrganization] #WHO.]
The death toll is rising as human-caused climate crisis drives more frequent, more brutal and longer #Heatwaves...]
//
Do read the whole article by @TheGuardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/31/phoenix-heat-deaths
@gerrymcgovern
#AI's competition for human's basic needs #Datacenters
#Energy
👉 #Google’s huge new #Kent #datacentre to emit 570,000 tonnes of #CO2 a year👈
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#GoogleMEWS #AlphabetMEWS #TechnologyMEWS #TechnologySectorMEWS #BusinessMEWS #GreenhouseGasEmissionsMEWS #EnvironmentMEWS #UkNewsMEWS
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Exclusive: Planning documents show impact of #Thurrock ‘#hyperscale’ unit as #UK attempts to ramp up AI capacity...
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/sep/15/google-datacentre-kent-co2-thurrock-uk-ai
Gerry McGovern
HistoPol (#HP) 🏴 🇺🇸 🏴
RRB
