Data centres face scrutiny over electricity and water use

Growing opposition to the expansion of data centres is emerging in both the United States and Britain due to concerns over resource consumption and local impact. In the US, authorities in New York and Texas have implemented moratoriums or pauses on data centre developments to conduct audits regarding electricity and water usage.

In the United Kingdom, campaign groups like Foxglove have highlighted that hyperscale data centres require “colossal” amounts of electricity. Additionally, Water UK reports that while data centres currently consume approximately 6.6 million litres of water daily, this figure could rise to 20 million litres a day by the end of the decade as the government aims to triple capacity.