Chicago has abundant water. Data center developers want a taste.
Data center developments in Chicago and northern Illinois are intensifying concerns over water and energy usage. Chicago's Mayor signed an executive order to enact stricter regulations, while residents in Joliet filed a lawsuit over a recently approved data center project. Meanwhile, new legislation to regulate data center water and energy consumption has been proposed at the state level.
The Chicago area and northern Illinois are experiencing an influx of proposed data centers, prompting scrutiny over their demand for water resources, particularly from Lake Michigan. Experts and advocates, including Helena Volzer of the Alliance for the Great Lakes and Robert Hirschfeld of the Prairie Rivers Network, are raising concerns about the lack of transparency in water usage reporting by large industrial consumers connected to municipal systems, and the region's historical lack of comprehensive water planning compared to drier parts of the country.
Despite Illinois' exception from the Great Lakes Compact, which typically governs water diversions, Chicago's Mayor Brandon Johnson recently signed an executive order to enact stricter regulations on data centers within the city, particularly following intense scrutiny over the Quantum Shore development. This action came after the Mayor received a letter from developers stating they would not proceed with a lakefront data center, though future phases are still advertised.
Concurrently, the cities of Joliet and Minooka, which are slated to receive Lake Michigan water via a new pipeline in 2030, have approved data center projects. Joliet approved a project from developer Hillwood in March, after working to significantly reduce its projected water usage. However, residents in Joliet filed a lawsuit in May, citing concerns about water and power availability, and governmental transparency, especially given the city's issues with leaky pipes. An Illinois POWER (Protecting Our Water, Energy, and Ratepayers) Act, which would mandate water usage reporting and environmental assessments for data centers, failed to pass last legislative session but remains a topic of discussion for potential passage in the fall.