Data Centers’ Growing Water Consumption Raises Concerns in Great Lakes Region

As artificial intelligence infrastructure expands across the United States, data centers are consuming unprecedented amounts of water and electricity, causing environmental concerns particularly in the Great Lakes region where water levels are already declining.

The Water-Hungry AI Infrastructure Boom

Data centers supporting AI operations are rapidly multiplying across America, with the Great Lakes region becoming a prime target for development. In Perkins Township, Ohio, local farmer Tom Hermes expressed concern about Texas-based Aligned Data Centers constructing a massive four-building campus near his farmland, worried about its impact on local water resources.

The Great Lakes, which constitute the world’s largest freshwater reserves, are experiencing lower-than-average water levels. Lake Erie has recorded below-average levels for two consecutive months, and compared to 2019, water levels across all five Great Lakes have dropped between two and four feet.

Measuring Data Center Impact

Experts remain divided on exactly how much water AI data centers consume. Cornell environmental studies professor Fengqi You suggests that while it’s not a nationwide crisis yet, locations with existing water stress could face significant problems from these facilities.

Transparency is lacking regarding data centers’ resource consumption. Clean Wisconsin, an activist group, claims that one facility in Port Washington could use approximately 54 million gallons of water daily when accounting for electricity generation—equivalent to the water consumption of about 970,000 Wisconsin residents.

Community Opposition Growing

Public resistance to data center development is intensifying across the region. In Port Washington, Wisconsin, protests at a city council meeting resulted in three arrests for disorderly conduct. Similar concerns have emerged in communities like Hobart, Indiana and Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin.

Michigan’s lower peninsula alone has seen work begin on 16 data center projects in 2025, while Lake Michigan’s water level has fallen about 12 inches below its long-term average, according to Watershed Center Grand Traverse Bay waterkeeper Heather Smith.

The Broader Context

The controversy occurs against a backdrop of multiple environmental challenges. While data centers face scrutiny for their water usage, other water-intensive industries like industrial agriculture continue operations with less public opposition.

Without government-mandated transparency requirements, accurately assessing the total environmental impact of data centers—including both direct water consumption and indirect usage through energy generation—remains difficult.