A new report from the Sierra Club claims Wisconsin’s dependence on fossil fuels for power generation, including the buildout of massive data centers, poses enormous costs to the state’s natural resources.
The report, “Thirsty Power: Coal and gas will leave us high and dry,” analyzes Wisconsin’s current power generation, the water needed for that power, and the potential effects on Wisconsin’s water as large technology companies try to build more data centers here.
The report said such “hyperscale” data centers require enormous amounts of power and in some cases are prompting entirely new gas plants that will compound water and energy use at peak times.
Among the report’s findings are that Wisconsin’s current “dirty energy power fleet,” which the Sierra Club said includes coal, gas and nuclear plants, withdraws 1.34 trillion gallons of water annually.
This water usage is more than 7 times that of all municipalities in Wisconsin combined, and 18 times more than agricultural irrigation, the report said.
Meanwhile, solar and wind use so little water that the U.S. Energy Information Administration doesn’t even track their usage.
In addition, the report said five new gas plants, known or assumed to be proposed for data centers, would use 142 million gallons of water a year on average — the equivalent of the annual drinking water for 284 million people.
The majority of this water would be needed during summer months when energy and water use has been strained by drought and heat, the report said.
Data center operators say new closed-loop systems will help conserve water, but Elizabeth Ward, director of the Sierra Club’s Wisconsin chapter, said in a press release that water resources would be taxed.
“Water is our way of life in Wisconsin, but our dependency on fossil fuels for power generation drains our most precious resource,” Ward said. “Across the state, Big Tech is looking to build out massive AI data centers and power plant builders are asking regulators to green-light expensive gas plants to power them. The potential cost to our environment, our water, and our wallets is enormous.
“Wisconsin isn’t Wisconsin without safe, clean water to drink, swim, and fish in,” Ward said. “The fossil fuel and gas rush has to be stopped. We have to protect our most vital resources.”
