Do you use Chat GPT? Do you talk to Siri on your phone? If so, you’ve helped fuel the rise in data centers. Now, the energy-hungry, water-thirsty centers are coming to places in the Southwest, including the lands of native peoples. That was the topic of a panel discussion Friday in Window Rock, Arizona, organized by Diné C.A.R.E., a Navajo environmental organization. Executive director of Diné C.A.R.E. Robyn Jackson said data centers have become a serious concern for the Navajo Nation. She said five centers have been proposed in and near the nation, three in Arizona and two in New Mexico. … Water required to cool the facilities is also enormous. Yet centers are being built in hot, arid states such as Arizona, even as it and six other states wrangle over how to allocate Colorado River water.

Other data center water use news:

• Arizona Republic (Phoenix): Data centers are key to the AI boom. So why is Arizona pushing back?
• Government Technology: Data center inquiries prompt county to update land use code
• The Washington Post: Opinion: Data centers are gobbling up a resource — but not the one you think
• Environmental Defense Fund: Blog: Decoding data centers — sustainability due diligence across the value chain