Researchers from the University of California, Riverside, found that health impacts from pollution associated with California’s computer processing data centers tripled from 2019 to 2023 — and could rise by another 72% by 2028 unless mitigation policies are enacted. … From 2019 to 2023, the total evaporated water — including both direct evaporation for cooling and indirect evaporation for electricity generation — used by California data centers increased by more than 96%, reaching 49.9 billion liters, mostly from indirect evaporation. By 2028, that number could rise to 116 billion liters annually — a concern in a state that regularly faces drought and water shortages.

Other data center water use news:

• KJZZ (Phoenix, Ariz.): Western states face unprecedented energy, water demand driven by AI boom​