Water scarcity is rising as a major concern for European datacenters after an unusually hot, dry summer and intense heatwaves in southern Europe. Climate change is disrupting weather patterns, increasing wildfires and flash floods while reducing aquifer recharge. The growing density of AI training infrastructure raises cooling requirements and freshwater demand. Efforts exist to find alternatives to water cooling and to reduce consumption, but water remains central to operations. OECD estimates indicate AI tools could require 4.2–6.6 billion cubic meters of water annually by 2027. An average mid-sized datacenter can use about 300,000 gallons (1.4 million liters) of water.
Climate change also means that the requirement for water to cool the ever-expanding base of datacenters is likely to become an issue that needs addressing," commented Robert Pritchard, GlobalData Principal Analyst, Enterprise Technology & Services.
"More than the entire annual use for a country like Denmark, or nearly half of that of the UK," he says.
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