Google Massive Data Centers in the US Spark Worry Over Scarce Western Water --- gadget news

Google Massive Data Centers in the US Spark Worry Over Scarce Western Water

Google wants to build at least two data centers in Dalles, worrying some residents who fear they will eventually not have enough water for everyone.

POINTS

1. Google's move to build data centers raises public concerns

2. Dalles is facing an extreme and unusual drought

3. The US owns 30 percent of the world's data centers

Now an integral part of the modern computer, data centers help people to stream movies on Netflix, make PayPal transactions, post updates on Facebook, store billions of photos and more. But one facility can also pump millions of gallons of water a day to keep thermostats cool.

Google wants to build at least two data centers in Dalles, worrying some residents who fear they will eventually not have enough water for everyone - including local farms and orchards, which are the largest users.

Across the United States, there has been a slight decline as technology companies build and expand data centers - conflicts that could escalate as water becomes a valuable resource amid the threat of climate change and as the demand for cloud computing grows. Some tech giants have been using research and development to find less effective cooling methods, but there are those who say that companies can still do much to improve the environment.

Concerns are understandable in Dalles, which is the seat of Wasco County, which is facing a severe and unique drought, according to the US Drought Monitor. The region last summer endured its hottest days in history, reaching 118 degrees Fahrenheit (48 Celsius) in Dalles.

Dalles is close to the great Columbia River, but the new data centers will not be able to use that water and will instead have to draw water from rivers and groundwater passing through the city's water treatment plant.

However, the ice in the nearby Cascade Range that feeds the aquifers varies from year to year and the glaciers melt. Most aquifers in north-central Oregon are shrinking, according to the US Geological Survey Groundwater Resources Program.

Adding to the discomfort: 15,000 city dwellers do not know how much water the proposed data centers will use, because Google calls it a trade secret. Even city councilors, scheduled to vote on the proposal on November 8, had to wait until this week to find out.

Dave Anderson, director of public works at The Dalles, said Google acquired the rights to use 3.9 million gallons of water a day when it bought land that was home to an aluminum smelter. Google is asking for less water for new data centers than that number and will transfer those rights to the city, Anderson said.

The city is the best, ”he said.

For its part, Google said it was "committed to the long-term health of the region's economy and natural resources."

"We are pleased to continue discussions with local authorities on an agreement that allows us to continue to grow and support the community," said Google, adding that the expansion proposal also includes a potential aquifer system to conserve water and time.

The US hosts 30 percent of the world's data centers, more than any other country. Some data centers try to be more efficient in the use of water, for example by refilling the same water several times in the facility before draining it. Google even uses purified seawater, instead of using drinking water as do most data centers, to cool its location in Douglas County, Georgia.

Facebook's first data center used the cold desert air in Prineville, Oregon, to cool its servers, and continued to build the facility in Lulea, Sweden, near the Arctic Circle.

Microsoft has even set up a small data center, enclosed in what looks like a large cigarette, on the beach near Scotland. After returning the container stored in the barn last year after two years, the company's employees saw an improvement in overall reliability because the servers did not cope with fluctuations in temperature and corrosion from oxygen and moisture. Team leader Ben Cutler said research shows that data centers can be kept cool without tapping clean water resources.

A study published in May by researchers at Virginia Tech and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory showed one-fifth of water-dependent data centers ranging from moderate to high-pressure water components.

Technology companies often consider tax breaks and the availability of cheap electricity and land when setting up data centers, says another research author Landon Marston, an assistant professor of civil engineering and the environment at Virginia Tech.

They need to seriously consider the impacts of water, and put resources in areas where they can thrive, in order to benefit the environment and their own goal, Marston said.

"It is also a problem of risk and tightness of data centers and their operators, because the drought we are seeing in the West is expected to be very severe," Marston said.

About an hour's drive east of The Dalles, Amazon returns the bulk of the water used by its data centers. Amazon's largest campuses, located between Bodiman and Umatilla, in Oregon, face farmland, the cheese industry and surrounding areas. Like most data centers, they use water especially in summer, and servers are air-cooled all year round.

About two-thirds of Amazon's water uses evaporation. Some are treated and sent to irrigation canals that feed plants and pastures.

Umatilla City Manager Dave Stockdale is very grateful that farms and farms have access to that water, as a major issue the city had as Amazon facilities grew that the city's water treatment plant could not cope with the depletion of data centers.

John DeVoe, executive director of WaterWatch Oregon, in an effort to reform water laws to protect and rehabilitate rivers, described it as “a corporate diplomatic strategy.”

"Does it minimize any damage to the actual use of the server farm for other interests that may be using the same water source, such as nature, fish and wildlife?" Said DeVoe.

Adam Selipsky, CEO of Amazon Web Services, emphasizes that Amazon feels responsible for its implications.

"We have been deliberately aware of the use of water in any of these programs," he said, adding that these institutions have brought the economy and jobs to the region.

Dawn Rasmussen, who lives on the outskirts of The Dalles, is concerned that her city made a mistake in negotiating with Google, comparing it to David and Goliath.

You’ve seen the level of his spring water drop every year and worries sooner or later won’t be enough for everyone.

“At the end of the day, if there is no water, who will win?” he asks.