UN report and company disclosures intensify scrutiny of AI data centers’ water use

Thursday, June 11, 2026Science & ClimateWell-covered4 frames

A June report from the UN University Institute for Water, Environment, and Health examined water use by AI-related data centers and said these facilities are drawing large volumes of water, including in drought-stressed regions.
Amazon said its global data-center operations used about 2.5 billion gallons of water in 2025, which is more than 9 billion liters.
Amazon said this was the first time it had publicly disclosed a companywide figure for its data-center water use.
Amazon said its 2025 data-center water use fell 2% from 2024 even as it expanded its data-center footprint.
The disclosure comes amid broader scrutiny of the environmental impact of AI and data centers, especially their water and electricity use.
Some governments and localities, including Seattle, have considered or adopted pauses or moratoriums on new data-center construction while studying their impacts.
Researchers and community advocates say more detailed, facility-level disclosure is still needed to assess how data-center water use affects local communities.

How left and right are reading this

Both agree: Large data-center water use is real enough to warrant scrutiny, and companywide disclosure alone does not settle the question of how those demands affect specific communities, especially where water stress is already a concern.
They split on: Less a disagreement than a question of emphasis: the urgency of water burdens that may be falling on drought-stressed communities, versus the significance of Amazon finally disclosing a companywide figure and showing a 2% decline as it expanded.

A June report from the UN University Institute for Water, Environment, and Health examined water use by AI-related data centers and said these facilities are drawing large volumes of water, including in drought-stressed regions.
Amazon said its global data-center operations used about 2.5 billion gallons of water in 2025, which is more than 9 billion liters.
Amazon said this was the first time it had publicly disclosed a companywide figure for its data-center water use.
Amazon said its 2025 data-center water use fell 2% from 2024 even as it expanded its data-center footprint.
The disclosure comes amid broader scrutiny of the environmental impact of AI and data centers, especially their water and electricity use.
Some governments and localities, including Seattle, have considered or adopted pauses or moratoriums on new data-center construction while studying their impacts.
Researchers and community advocates say more detailed, facility-level disclosure is still needed to assess how data-center water use affects local communities.

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