Abbott wants Texas data centers penalized for failing to respond to water use inquiry
Governor Greg Abbott has directed the Texas Water Development Board to penalize data centers that failed to respond to a recent inquiry into their water usage. More than 70% of data centers surveyed reportedly broke the law by not disclosing their water consumption, leading to calls for civil or criminal penalties. This action follows a recent moratorium on data center construction permits ordered by Abbott.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has instructed the state's Water Development Board to impose civil and criminal penalties on data centers that failed to comply with a recent state-ordered survey on their water usage. The Texas Water Development Board reported that over 70% of the more than 300 data centers surveyed did not respond, prompting the governor to emphasize the industry's responsibility to protect Texas water resources.
Abbott's directive urges the board to utilize its full enforcement authority for both past non-compliance and any future failures, potentially leading to consequences such as automatic denial of permits from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The issue of data center water consumption has become a politically charged topic, particularly in rural communities, with concerns raised over transparency and public trust regarding developers' activities.
The lack of response from data centers has hampered the Water Development Board's ability to formulate effective state water consumption plans. Projections from the Houston Advanced Research Center suggest that data center water use could escalate to approximately 161 billion gallons by 2030. Abbott has also ordered the board to refer violators to local prosecutors and to collaborate with the Public Utility Commission and ERCOT on an ongoing audit of the state's power grid usage, an initiative that stems from an August moratorium on new data center construction permits issued by the governor.