Why data centers are sparking debate over energy and water
KWQC examines the environmental costs associated with data centers, including their growing electricity demand and water use for cooling. The report says data centers consumed nearly 5% of U.S. electricity in 2024 and could approach 12% by 2030, while direct water consumption reached an estimated 17 billion gallons in 2023.
KWQC reporter Cyle Dickens examines concerns surrounding the growth of data centers in Clinton, Iowa, focusing on their impacts on electricity systems, water resources and the environment. The report describes data centers as the infrastructure supporting artificial intelligence and other digital services, while noting that their expanding computing demand requires substantial energy and cooling resources.
Citing Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the report says data centers accounted for nearly 5% of U.S. electricity use in 2024 and could approach 12% by 2030 under one projection. It warns that increased demand could require new power plants and transmission infrastructure, and that reliance on fossil-fuel generation would increase carbon emissions. The report also estimates that U.S. data centers directly consumed 17 billion gallons of water in 2023, roughly three times the 2014 level, with evaporative cooling returning water to the atmosphere but reducing its immediate availability to the communities that supplied it. It adds that even facilities without water-based cooling can have an indirect water footprint through the electricity they consume.