Will Cooler Data Centers Win Over Communities?

Data centers — the giant buildings that power the internet and artificial intelligence — need enormous amounts of water or electricity just to stay cool. But using too much water makes nearby communities angry, and cutting back on water means burning more power, which harms the environment. Now, tech companies are racing to find better solutions before more projects get blocked by the public.

The problem starts with computer chips. Whether they sit inside a laptop or a huge AI facility, chips get very hot and must be cooled down. Data centers can hold tens of thousands of chips, so they need as much electricity as a small power plant just to keep things from overheating.

To save electricity, many data centers use a method called 'evaporative cooling.' This process soaks up heat using large amounts of water and then releases that heat as steam into the air. It works well, but it uses a lot of water — and that is causing serious problems in many communities.

Since 2022, two-thirds of new U.S. data centers have been built in areas where water is already scarce. Communities are pushing back hard. In just the first three months of 2026, public opposition disrupted at least 75 data center projects worth $130 billion, according to the tracking company Data Center Watch.

Farmers, ranchers, and city residents all depend on the same limited water supplies. Andrew Coppin, who runs a company called Ranchbot that helps farmers track water use, said that data centers are piling onto an already strained system. 'You've got property development, cities, dairies, agriculture, ranches already competing for water resources, and now throw on top of that data centers,' he said.

Making the situation harder is the fact that most tech companies do not share details about how much water they use. There is also no federal law requiring them to do so. Eric Masanet, a data center expert at the University of California, Santa Barbara, told Congress in February that no other major U.S. energy sector growing this fast has so many gaps in public information.

Tech companies are trying several new approaches to solve the water problem. Some are testing 'hybrid' systems that switch between water-based and air-based cooling depending on the weather. Others are looking at using recycled water or a method called 'adiabatic cooling,' which sprays water onto outside air before it enters the building.

Amazon Web Services is planning a facility in Louisiana that will use outside air for cooling about 87 percent of the year. Microsoft has pledged to reach zero water use and is experimenting with chips that can run safely at higher temperatures. These efforts show that big companies are taking the challenge seriously.

A newer method, called 'closed-loop cooling,' pumps liquid through cold plates that sit directly on the computer chips. Supporters say this could greatly reduce water use. But experts warn it is not a perfect fix — some closed-loop systems still need water to remove extra heat from the liquid itself.

In other energy news, the U.S. is seeing early signs of a uranium mining boom as the Trump administration pushes to revive nuclear power, raising concerns about water and tribal lands in the West. The Trump administration's new climate office is now led by a scientist who has questioned mainstream climate science. Arizona has also repealed its energy efficiency rules, saying they no longer fit the state's rapid data center and factory growth.