nixCraft 🐧Tech companies defeat bill as AI drains local water supplies https://www.theolympus.net/13531/
Washington House Bill 2515, which aimed to make data centers pay for their own grid infrastructure and use clean energy, failed in March 2026. Despite passing the House, the bill was defeated in the Senate following heavy lobbying from tech giants like Microsoft and Amazon. They will keep using clean water and electricity but bill needs to be paid by locals.
Tech companies defeat bill as AI drains local water supplies
Washington state is home to about 126 artificial intelligence data centers. These data centers evaporate millions of gallons of freshwater each day to provide cooling, but at the cost of draining local resources. The rapid expansion of these data centers strains regional drinking water supplies, as well as increasing blackout risk due to the high...
Terence Eden