Two-Thirds of Planned US Datacenters Target Drought Zones

The artificial intelligence industry's infrastructure expansion is on a collision course with America's water crisis. A new analysis reveals that approximately two-thirds of planned datacenter projects are slated for construction in areas currently experiencing drought conditions, even as the United States faces its most extensive spring drought in modern records.

According to analysis by The Guardian using data from Cleanview and federal drought monitoring systems, 517 of 809 planned datacenters will be built in locations that have experienced drought throughout the past year. This pattern mirrors existing infrastructure, where a similar proportion of operating datacenters already sit in drought-affected regions.

The scale of water demand

The numbers are staggering. Large datacenters can consume up to 5 million gallons of water daily—equivalent to the usage of 50,000 people—primarily for cooling the networked computers that power AI systems. Industry-wide, datacenter water consumption is projected to jump from approximately 17 billion gallons in 2023 to 73 billion gallons annually by 2028.

Researchers estimate that each 100-word AI prompt consumes roughly one 500-milliliter bottle of water due to cooling requirements. In Texas alone, datacenters could account for 9 percent of the state's total water use by 2040, according to recent calculations.

Why it matters

This infrastructure buildout is creating fundamental conflicts over resource allocation in water-scarce regions. As climate change intensifies drought conditions, communities face a stark question: should datacenters receive priority water access over residents, farms, and ranches? The legal frameworks in many eastern states weren't designed for water scarcity scenarios, leaving regulators unprepared for these emerging battles. With over 60 percent of the contiguous US currently in varying drought stages and three-quarters of the global population potentially facing drought impacts by 2050, the timing of this AI infrastructure boom could hardly be worse.

Political and community backlash

The water issue has become politically charged, particularly in rural conservative areas where much of the opposition originates. Polling indicates 70 percent of Americans oppose living near a datacenter. Several states are now considering regulatory responses, from mandatory water usage reporting in California, Michigan, and Iowa to potential construction moratoriums in New York.

In Utah, a controversial datacenter project twice the size of Manhattan recently received approval despite the county being in deep drought since last summer. The project, backed by businessman Kevin O'Leary, has united typically disparate groups—urban and rural communities, farmers and environmentalists—in opposition.

Industry response and tradeoffs

Datacenter operators argue their current water consumption remains a small fraction of agricultural use and point to investments in water-efficient technologies. The Data Center Coalition emphasizes industry collaboration with local authorities and conservation organizations.

However, water-saving closed-loop cooling systems present their own challenge: they require more energy to operate, typically from fossil fuel sources that themselves demand substantial water for electricity generation. Meta's proposed Louisiana datacenter illustrates this tradeoff—while using closed-loop cooling, it will need energy from ten gas-fired power plants that will consume large water volumes.

A January study found that datacenters themselves represent just 4 percent of the 30 trillion gallons of additional water needed globally for AI expansion by mid-century. Power generation and semiconductor fabrication for AI will demand far more.

Christopher Dalbom, a water resources law expert at Tulane University, warns that a "crunch point is inevitable" as water demand escalates while supply diminishes. "When we get into a situation where there's a limited amount of water available, are we going to limit water to residents and businesses before datacenters?" he asked.

These details were first reported by The Guardian in their analysis of datacenter locations and drought conditions.