Texas water supply: Data centers could make up 9% of demand by 2040, paper finds

AUSTIN, Texas - Up to 9% of Texas' water supply could be used by data centers alone as early as 2040, a newly released paper from the University of Texas at Austin says.

Data centers currently make up less than a single percent of demand in the state.

Texas water and data centers

As data centers continue to grow, including those used to train artificial intelligence, so grows the demand for water. Data centers use water to cool their electronic components, as well as to produce the power fueling the centers themselves. 

According to a new white paper from UT Austin, those centers could use 3% to 9% of Texas' water in less than 15 years, comparable to the 7% currently used by manufacturing in the state.

What they're saying:

"There's a lot of uncertainty surrounding the water use for data centers," said Mariam Arzumanyan, a postdoctoral fellow at the Bureau of Economic Geology, a research unit of the UT Jackson School of Geosciences. "People don't know the scale of how much water is going to be needed. There is not a unified understanding of the technologies used for cooling, or how much water that technology would use."

Texas water woes

Texas is already facing rising concerns over diminished groundwater supply, and cities like Pflugerville and Corpus Christi are among those already feeling the pain. 

A state analysis released in April showed that $174 billion would need to be shelled out over the next 50 years to prevent a severe water crisis. That number nearly doubles the $80 billion projected the last time the state water development board passed their last plan four years ago.

Some good news:

In the shorter term, the U.S. Drought Monitor shows some improvement to a years-long drought affecting the state. Numbers updated last week show about 82% of Texas is in some form of drought. Compare that to last week’s 84% and 97% three months ago.

What's the solution?

What's next:

One thing is nearly certain: Data centers are going to continue to grow, and Texas is a hotbed for newly approved projects over the coming years. With the boom in the new area of the tech industry, issues like power and water will be a given, and researchers are working toward solutions that can be implemented early to curb the problems. 

Researchers with the school have offered up three broad areas where Texas can improve:

• Greater awareness and systematic communication among key stakeholders, including data center operators, utilities, municipalities, state agencies, and private developers.
• Better mapping and accounting for projected industry growth in water-stressed regions of the state.
• Working toward integrated planning frameworks that combine hydrologic projections, grid capacity models, land-use constraints, and permitting processes.

What they're saying:

"What we're trying to do via this white paper and the work that follows is come up with tools and techniques to predict water use, both direct and indirect, and help inform the community, city planners and local government about the water needs of emerging data centers," said Vaibhav Bahadur, an associate professor in the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering at the UT Cockrell School of Engineering.

"We need shared definitions and a common framework. Right now, conversations around data center water and energy are often inconsistent because people are using different assumptions and metrics," said Ning Lin, chief economist at the bureau and COMPASS principal investigator. "This is where COMPASS can play a key role. As an independent research institute, we can provide objective analysis that helps align how industry, academia and policymakers understand these issues. We can create a common language that supports better decisions and more productive conversations by building a clear and consistent framework."