Great Lakes Compact scrutinized over data center water usage in Wisconsin
Concerns are being raised about Microsoft's data center water usage in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, and whether it falls under the protections of the Great Lakes Compact. An environmental group filed a lawsuit, revealing the facility's water consumption from a public utility, raising questions about reporting requirements and the compact's effectiveness.
The Great Lakes Compact, established in 2008 by eight states and two Canadian provinces, was designed to protect the world's largest freshwater system by preventing most water from leaving the basin. However, a new report raises questions about whether this protection extends to data centers, specifically highlighting Microsoft's operations in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin.
Microsoft has invested $20 million in data centers in Mount Pleasant, claiming their cooling systems use approximately 15,000 gallons of water per day, a figure well below the 5 million gallon threshold that would trigger regional review under the Compact. However, critics argue this figure only accounts for directly visible water use. An analysis by Clean Wisconsin found that the immense electricity demands of these data centers could lead nearby gas plants to consume an additional 54 million gallons of water daily, indirectly attributable to data center operations.
A significant issue identified is that when a data center purchases water from a public utility, the company is not legally required to report its usage. Wisconsin authorities only became aware of Microsoft's water consumption numbers in Mount Pleasant after an environmental group initiated a lawsuit. This situation highlights a potential loophole in the Great Lakes Compact, suggesting that while the compact aims to protect the lakes, its current fine print might not adequately cover the complex water demands of large-scale data center operations.