Exploring Data Centers & Wyoming Water Impacts

One of the biggest concerns about data centers being constructed in states like Wyoming is how much water they might require to keep them cool. There are a lot of unknowns. These massive data centers are a new idea that takes us into uncharted territory.

Here is what we do know.

According to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI).

Large data centers can consume up to 5 million gallons per day, equivalent to the water use of a town populated by 10,000 to 50,000 people.

Novel technologies like direct-to-chip cooling and immersion cooling can reduce water and energy usage by data centers.

The video below shows Google's answer to the water issue.

Approximately 80% of the water (typically freshwater) withdrawn by data centers evaporates, with the remaining water discharged to municipal wastewater facilities. The large volume of wastewater from data centers may overwhelm existing local facilities, which were not designed to handle such a high volume.

The Colorado River is at an all-time low level, causing communities and states downstream to ask for help. Part of this problem has been the ever growing cities in dry states like Arizona. We are using more than ever before; the first mega-data-center comes on line.

It's not a matter of just one new mega data center in Wyoming. Over 70 have been proposed. So where is all this water supposed to come from? Imagine having multiple data centers in one area all competing for the same water that the local community needs.

To reduce the strain on drinking water supplies, major operators are increasingly sourcing treated wastewater (effluent) from nearby municipal sewage treatment plants for their cooling systems.

Some facilities use closed-loop systems where a fixed volume of water continuously recirculates between the server room and outside radiators to safely expel heat.

Can engineers find another way to cool these data centers? Not yet, but they are exploring ideas.