Drought-Ravaged Georgia Asks Data Centers to Cut Water Use

Drought-prone Georgia is struggling with the water demands of AI data centers, and metropolitan Atlanta planners are asking developers to heed community demands to cut their water use even as water consumption ranges widely.

“There’s no easy answer for how much water data centers are requesting,” said Celine Benoit, principal planner for the Atlanta Regional Commission and Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District, speaking Monday at the American Water Works Association’s annual conference in Washington.

The Atlanta area is the second largest data center market in the US in terms of megawatts constructed, behind northern Virginia. Like other parts of ...