Water and energy are interconnected. A frequent term to describe
this relationship is the “water-energy nexus.”
Energy for Water: Energy is needed to store water, get it where
it is needed and also treat it to be used:
* Extracting water from rivers and streams or pumping it
from aquifers, and then conveying it over hills and into storage
facilities is a highly energy intensive process. The State Water
Project (SWP) pumps water 700 miles, including up nearly 2,000
feet over the Tehachapi Mountains. The SWP is the largest single
user of energy in California. It consumes an average of 5 billion
kWh per year. That’s about 2 to 3 percent of all electricity
consumed in California
* Water treatment facilities use energy to pump and process
water for use in homes, businesses and industry
* Consumers use energy to treat water with softeners or
filters, to circulate and pressurize water and to heat and cool
water
* Wastewater plants use energy to pump wastewater to
treatment plants, and also to aerate and filter it at the plant.
Different end uses require more electricity for delivery than
others. Water for residential, commercial and industrial end-use
needs the most energy (11 percent), followed by agricultural
end-use (3 percent), residential, commercial and industrial
supply and treatment (3 percent), agricultural water supply and
treatment (1 percent) and wastewater treatment (1 percent),
according to the California Energy Commission.
Water for Energy: Water is used to generate electricity
* Water is needed either to process raw materials used in a
facility or maintaining a plant,or to just generate electricity
itself.
Overall, the electricity industry is second only to agriculture
as the largest user of water in the United States. Electricity
production from fossil fuels and nuclear energy requires 190,000
million gallons of water per day, accounting for 39 percent of
all freshwater withdrawals in the nation. Coal, the most abundant
fossil fuel, currently accounts for 52 percent of U.S.
electricity generation, and each kWh generated from coal requires
withdrawal of 25 gallons of water.
…[A] potentially giant data center is coming to the
Casper area, announced by Prometheus Hyperscale, in
partnership with Spiritus and Casper Carbon Capture.
… Thornock’s data centers will all use a water frugal
model, though it’s a different approach from the one Related
Digital outlines this week in its groundbreaking ceremony for
its $1.2 billion project in Cheyenne. … [Prometheus CEO
Trenton] Thornock’s system takes a geothermal approach to
cooling. It will pull up non-potable water
from far below the drinking water table for cooling its
systems, then send that water back where it came from.
… Today, Reno, “the Biggest Little City in the World,” is
poised to become a new player in the nation’s data center
construction boom. At least three data center projects have
been approved since 2024, with more in a nearby industrial
park. … But opponents argue that data centers can also
bring consequences, if they raise electricity costs or cause
water shortages down the road. … A Bloomberg investigation
found that two-thirds of all new data centers are being built
in water-stressed regions, like Nevada, where severe drought is
a major concern.
The six bathrooms that will be in a
184,000-square-foot data center that Related Digital
is building out for CoreWeave in Cheyenne are going
to use more water than the data center’s cooling
systems. That’s according to Related Companies CEO Jeff
Blau, who was in Cheyenne Tuesday to break ground on the $1.2
billion facility. … “What are the two complaints you
hear about, you hear about water consumption. Neighborhoods and
communities are concerned that we’re going to use up all the
water,” he said. So, the $1.2 billion data center that Related
Digital is developing isn’t going to use any water.
… There are several ways to get energy from deep within the
Earth. Hydrothermal systems tap into underground hot water and
steam to generate electricity. These resources are concentrated
in geologically active areas where heat, water and permeable
rock naturally coincide. In the U.S., that’s generally
California, Nevada and Utah. … Some geothermal fluids
contain valuable minerals; lithium concentrations in the
groundwater of California’s Salton Sea region could potentially
supply battery manufacturers. … Despite its challenges,
geothermal energy’s reliability, low emissions and scalability
make it a vital complement to solar and wind.
Deep in the Piedmont Hills, Gregg Semler and Casey Leblanc are
checking up on what could be described as the Bay Area’s newest
and smallest hydroelectric power plant. … The team installed
the miniaturized turbine in a pipeline connecting part of the
East Bay Municipal Utility District’s water distribution
system. It takes the place of the normal water pressure
regulator, housed in a small building next door. But instead of
just controlling the flow, they say it harnesses it to produce
electricity, spinning the turbine-driven generator.
Three years after the federal government listed a tiny Nevada
toad on the endangered species list, a geothermal company
seeking to develop a project near the toad’s only known habitat
in Northern Nevada is suing the government over the listing.
Ormat Technologies, headquartered in Reno, is suing the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and U.S. Department of the
Interior, saying that the Dixie Valley toad was placed on the
endangered species list “without any evidence” that its
population is declining. … One of the concerns is that
geothermal pumping in the area could affect the quality,
temperature, or quantity of water in the wetlands where the
toad lives.
On a bright afternoon in August, the shore on the North Arm of
the Great Salt Lake looks like something out of a science
fiction film set in a scorching alien world. … This
otherworldly scene is the test site for a company called Lilac
Solutions, which is developing a technology it says will shake
up the United States’ efforts to pry control over the global
supply of lithium, the so-called “white gold” needed for
electric vehicles and batteries, away from China.
… Lilac is not the only company in the US pushing for
DLE. In California’s Salton Sea, developers such as
EnergySource Minerals are looking to build a geothermal power
plant to power a DLE facility pulling lithium from the inland
desert lake.
Datacenters’ electricity demands have been accused of delaying
the US’s transition to clean energy and requiring fossil fuel
plants to stay online, while their high level of water
consumption has also raised alarm. Now public health advocates
fear another environmental problem could be linked to them –
Pfas “forever chemical” pollution. … Advocates are
particularly concerned over the facilities’ use of Pfas gas.
… No testing for Pfas air or water pollution has yet
been done, and companies are not required to report the volume
of chemicals they use or discharge. But some environmental
groups are starting to push for state legislation that would
require more reporting.
… [T]he data center boom – driven by the proliferation of
artificial intelligence and cloud computing – comes at a high
cost. In our latest report, Data Center Impacts In the West:
Policy Solutions for Energy and Water Use, we found that annual
energy demands of Arizona’s three largest utilities – Arizona
Public Service (APS), Salt River Project (SRP), and Tucson
Electric Power (TEP) – will increase at a pace never before
seen in the state’s history. … [W]e give policy
recommendations designed to inform decision makers, advance the
transition to clean energy, conserve scarce water resources,
and protect electricity customers as we adapt to the sweeping
change of AI.
Data center companies want to triple Nevada’s energy capacity
to meet the power demands of a rapidly growing industry.
… But the new demand comes at an awkward time for
Nevada. Water access in the state is under severe threat by a
dwindling Colorado River. Water by the hundreds of
millions of gallons is commonly used by data centers to
effectively cool the hard working computers. While a law to ban
the most water wasteful centers — referred to as evaporative
cooling — was shot down in 2024, no such data centers
have been approved since February of last year.
… If signed into law, Assembly Bill 93 will require data
center operators to share with their water supplier how much
water they estimate they will consume when they apply for or
renew a business license or permit. It also directs state
agencies to develop water use efficiency guidelines and best
practices for data centers. … The same Big Tech groups
that are fighting the consumer cost bill are also opposed to
the water legislation, saying sharing water use data could
divulge trade secrets and harm the competitive edge of
businesses. … Roughly 17 data center projects
planned in California as of May are in areas where
water stress is high or extremely high, according to reporting
by Bloomberg.
OpenAI is scouring the U.S. for sites to build a network of
huge data centers to power its artificial intelligence
technology, expanding beyond a flagship Texas location and
looking across 16 states to accelerate the Stargate project
championed by President Donald Trump. … The company’s
request for proposals calls for sites with “proximity to
necessary infrastructure including power and
water.” … Data centers also typically
draw in large amounts of water for cooling. … The other
states where OpenAI is actively looking include
Arizona,California, Florida,
Louisiana, Maryland, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Utah, Virginia,
Washington and West Virginia.
South Platte Renew, which serves 300,000 customers in both
Littleton and Englewood, has transformed wastewater treatment
into a success story in renewable energy. … The team at
South Platte Renew considered how to capture the methane gas
and reuse it, eventually proposing a biogas pipeline injection
system in 2019. It was approved, and the $7.8 million price tag
was paid for through sewer funds from Englewood and Littleton.
It was the first of its kind system in the state of Colorado.
… South Platte Renew has now helped other water
treatment facilities in the state get their systems up and
running.
The Turlock Irrigation District has completed a $20 million
solar canopy over canals, marking a milestone in generating
clean energy and promising water savings in the Central Valley
city. … ”It limits the light available for
photosynthesis. So it could reduce the amount of aquatic weed
growth, which is a major canal maintenance issue. It also saves
land,” explained Brandi McKuin, a project scientist at UC
Merced. … The team is working to quantify whether the
benefits will outweigh the costs, considering water savings,
reduced aquatic weed growth and land savings.
Companies that run data centers are facing increasing scrutiny
for guzzling water in the dry western U.S. as artificial
intelligence fuels a boom in the industry. California
legislators passed a bill this month that would require the
facilities to report their projected water use before they
begin operating and thereafter certify how much they use
annually. The bill is now awaiting Gov. Gavin Newsom’s
signature. … The California legislation requires
companies to submit water information for both new and existing
facilities.
… U.S. data center demand, driven largely by A.I., could
triple by 2030, according to McKinsey, which would require data
centers to make nearly $7 trillion in investment to keep
up. … [A]ccording to the International Energy Agency, a
100-megawatt data center, which uses water to cool servers,
consumes roughly two million liters of water per day,
equivalent to 6,500 households. This puts strain on
water supply for nearby residential
communities, a majority of which, according to Bloomberg News,
are already facing high levels of water stress.
Can Page’s infrastructure and environment handle a gigawatt
data center? The proposed Huntley LLC data center would consume
as much electricity as a major power plant while demanding
millions of gallons of water daily in one of America’s most
water-stressed regions. … The Colorado River system, which
supplies Page through Lake Powell, faces its worst crisis in
recorded history. … A large data center could double the
community’s water demand. … Unlike agricultural or municipal
water use, data center cooling water is typically not returned
to the system in reusable form. The water evaporates through
cooling towers or becomes too thermally polluted for other
uses, representing a permanent withdrawal from the Colorado
River system.
Data center developer Beale Infrastructure says it is moving
forward with Project Blue, this time promising a greener
proposal that will use a new low-water air-cooling technology.
… According to the Beale letter, the new design “will
consume no water, potable or otherwise, for industrial
cooling.” … It’s unclear what water sources exist at the
site without Tucson Water. Arizona Department of Water
Resources spokesperson Doug MacEachern told Luminaria the final
user would have a few options, which could include groundwater
at the site, access through a municipal water provider, or the
use of long-term storage credits.
The Cawelo Water District is working on a new “produced water”
project to increase its irrigation supplies. Produced water is
water that comes up with oil during pumping. The district has
used oilfield produced water blended with other surface
supplies for irrigation for about two decades. Discussion
about the new project began in early August. The project is
expected to be completed in early 2026. Construction was pushed
back due to a delay in biological studies but is expected to
start at the end of this month.
To address growing AI demand, many companies are building or
leasing data centers around the globe. DCs that use water-based
cooling consume significant amounts of water, and in this
research, we have analyzed DC exposure to water stress
globally. We examined the current decade and the 2050s decade
under both moderate and moderate-to-high emissions scenarios,
using projections from the S&P Global Sustainable1 Physical
Risk dataset. We found that exposure is already high in some
regions, and we expect the industry’s exposure to water stress
will slightly increase by the 2050s.
Near Hickman, California, just outside Modesto, a 110-foot-wide
grid of solar panels now tops a section of canal, arching over
the gently flowing water. Solar projects have long been a
crucial piece of the state’s movement to clean energy, and
these panels are part of a new project that’s hoping to do far
more than just generate electricity. Dubbed Project Nexus, the
$20 million state-funded initiative hopes to better understand
whether these installations can be an even more efficient
approach to solar energy.
… The valley that was once a refuge for people fleeing the
Dust Bowl is facing its own reckoning with dust and water
scarcity. … Now, California lawmakers are wading in,
with a bill that aims to clear away a financial hurdle for
energy developers and landowners eager to plant solar farms
with battery storage on fallowed fields. … Authored by
Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, a Democrat from Oakland, the bill
tackles the Williamson Act. … Wicks’ bill would allow
farmers and ranchers to suspend their Williamson Act contracts
if they plant solar and storage on water-stressed farmland.
Property taxes would go back up, but they would avoid the
cancellation fees.
California’s digital backbone, sustained by a vast
constellation of data centers, is at a
critical juncture. Once operating quietly behind the
scenes, these facilities have been thrust into the spotlight
due to the convergence of two forces: surging demand for
digital services and the escalating impact of climate change.
… Water shortages make traditional cooling techniques
increasingly difficult to justify.
While the developer of Project Blue has made it clear it still
wants to buy energy from Tucson Electric Power despite defeat
at the hands of the Tucson City Council, its path to finding
water for its planned data-center complexes is much more hazy.
Project Blue developer Beale Infrastructure has declined to
answer questions from reporters or public officials about where
it intends to get water for its first data-center complex.
… Here is a look at four possible methods the company
could use to run its data centers, including one that would
require little water use.
On this first-ever Foundation water tourwe examined water issues along the 263-mile Klamath River, from its spring-fed headwaters in south-central Oregon to its redwood-lined estuary on the Pacific Ocean in California.
Running Y Resort
5500 Running Y Rd
Klamath Falls, OR 97601
This tour explored the lower Colorado River firsthand where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to some 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states, 30 tribal nations and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
Hilton Garden Inn Las Vegas Strip South
7830 S Las Vegas Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89123
Learn the history and challenges facing the West’s most dramatic
and developed river.
The Layperson’s Guide to the Colorado River Basin introduces the
1,450-mile river that sustains 40 million people and millions of
acres of farmland spanning seven states and parts of northern
Mexico.
The 28-page primer explains how the river’s water is shared and
managed as the Southwest transitions to a hotter and drier
climate.
This tour explored the lower Colorado River firsthand where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to some 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states, 30 tribal nations and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
Hilton Garden Inn Las Vegas Strip South
7830 S Las Vegas Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89123
This special Foundation water tour journeyed along the Eastern Sierra from the Truckee River to Mono Lake, through the Owens Valley and into the Mojave Desert to explore a major source of water for Southern California, this year’s snowpack and challenges for towns, farms and the environment.
This tour explored the lower Colorado River firsthand where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to some 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states, 30 tribal nations and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
Hyatt Place Las Vegas At Silverton Village
8380 Dean Martin Drive
Las Vegas, NV 89139
The lower Colorado River has virtually every drop allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states, 30 tribal nations and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
Hyatt Place Las Vegas At Silverton Village
8380 Dean Martin Drive
Las Vegas, NV 89139
This event explored the lower Colorado River where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
The majestic beauty of the Sierra
Nevada forest is awe-inspiring, but beneath the dazzling blue
sky, there is a problem: A century of fire suppression and
logging practices have left trees too close together. Millions of
trees have died, stricken by drought and beetle infestation.
Combined with a forest floor cluttered with dry brush and debris,
it’s a wildfire waiting to happen.
Fires devastate the Sierra watersheds upon which millions of
Californians depend — scorching the ground, unleashing a
battering ram of debris and turning hillsides into gelatinous,
stream-choking mudflows.
This tour explored the lower Colorado River where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs is the focus of this tour.
Silverton Hotel
3333 Blue Diamond Road
Las Vegas, NV 89139
We explored the lower Colorado River where virtually every drop
of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad
sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and
climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to 40 million people in
the Southwest across seven states and Mexico. How the Lower Basin
states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this
water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial
needs was the focus of this tour.
Hampton Inn Tropicana
4975 Dean Martin Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89118
This three-day, two-night tour explored the lower Colorado River
where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand
is growing from myriad sources — increasing population,
declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to 40 million people in
the Southwest across seven states and Mexico. How the Lower Basin
states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this
water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial
needs is the focus of this tour.
Best Western McCarran Inn
4970 Paradise Road
Las Vegas, NV 89119
This 30-minute documentary-style DVD on the history and current
state of the San Joaquin River Restoration Program includes an
overview of the geography and history of the river, historical
and current water delivery and uses, the genesis and timeline of
the 1988 lawsuit, how the settlement was reached and what was
agreed to.
This 25-minute documentary-style DVD, developed in partnership
with the California Department of Water Resources, provides an
excellent overview of climate change and how it is already
affecting California. The DVD also explains what scientists
anticipate in the future related to sea level rise and
precipitation/runoff changes and explores the efforts that are
underway to plan and adapt to climate.
20-minute DVD that explains the problem with polluted stormwater,
and steps that can be taken to help prevent such pollution and
turn what is often viewed as a “nuisance” into a water resource
through various activities.
Many Californians don’t realize that when they turn on the
faucet, the water that flows out could come from a source close
to home or one hundreds of miles away. Most people take their
water for granted; not thinking about the elaborate systems and
testing that go into delivering clean, plentiful water to
households throughout the state. Where drinking water comes from,
how it’s treated, and what people can do to protect its quality
are highlighted in this 2007 PBS documentary narrated by actress
Wendie Malick.
A 30-minute version of the 2007 PBS documentary Drinking Water:
Quenching the Public Thirst. This DVD is ideal for showing at
community forums and speaking engagements to help the public
understand the complex issues surrounding the elaborate systems
and testing that go into delivering clean, plentiful water to
households throughout the state.
Water truly has shaped California into the great state it is
today. And if it is water that made California great, it’s the
fight over – and with – water that also makes it so critically
important. In efforts to remap California’s circulatory system,
there have been some critical events that had a profound impact
on California’s water history. These turning points not only
forced a re-evaluation of water, but continue to impact the lives
of every Californian. This 2005 PBS documentary offers a
historical and current look at the major water issues that shaped
the state we know today. Includes a 12-page viewer’s guide with
background information, historic timeline and a teacher’s lesson.
This beautiful 24×36-inch poster, suitable for framing, displays
the rivers, lakes and reservoirs, irrigated farmland, urban areas
and Indian reservations within the Klamath River Watershed. The
map text explains the many issues facing this vast,
15,000-square-mile watershed, including fish restoration;
agricultural water use; and wetlands. Also included are
descriptions of the separate, but linked, Klamath Basin
Restoration Agreement and the Klamath Hydroelectric Agreement,
and the next steps associated with those agreements. Development
of the map was funded by a grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
A companion to the Truckee River Basin Map poster, this
24×36-inch poster, suitable for framing, explores the Carson
River, and its link to the Truckee River. The map includes the
Lahontan Dam and reservoir, the Carson Sink, and the farming
areas in the basin. Map text discusses the region’s hydrology and
geography, the Newlands Project, land and water use within the
basin and wetlands. Development of the map was funded by a grant
from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Mid-Pacific Region, Lahontan
Basin Area Office.
Redesigned in 2017, this beautiful map depicts the seven
Western states that share the Colorado River with Mexico. The
Colorado River supplies water to nearly 40 million people in
Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming
and Mexico. Text on this beautiful, 24×36-inch map, which is
suitable for framing, explains the river’s apportionment, history
and the need to adapt its management for urban growth and
expected climate change impacts.
The Water Education Foundation’s second edition of
the Layperson’s Guide to The Klamath River Basin is
hot off the press and available for purchase.
Updated and redesigned, the easy-to-read overview covers the
history of the region’s tribal, agricultural and environmental
relationships with one of the West’s largest rivers — and a
vast watershed that hosts one of the nation’s oldest and
largest reclamation projects.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to California Water provides an
excellent overview of the history of water development and use in
California. It includes sections on flood management; the state,
federal and Colorado River delivery systems; Delta issues; water
rights; environmental issues; water quality; and options for
stretching the water supply such as water marketing and
conjunctive use. New in this 10th edition of the guide is a
section on the human need for water.
The construction of Glen Canyon Dam
in 1964 created Lake Powell. Both are located in north-central
Arizona near the Utah border. Lake Powell acts as a holding tank
for outflow from the Colorado River Upper Basin States: Colorado,
New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming.
The water stored in Lake Powell is used for recreation, power
generation and delivering water to the Lower Basin states of
California, Arizona, and Nevada.
Every five years the California Department of Water Resources
updates its strategic plan for managing the state’s water
resources, as required by state law.
The California Water Plan, or Bulletin 160, projects the
status and trends of the state’s water supplies and demands
under a range of future scenarios.
This printed issue of Western Water looks at hydraulic
fracturing, or “fracking,” in California. Much of the information
in the article was presented at a conference hosted by the
Groundwater Resources Association of California.
The connection between water and energy is more relevant than
ever. After existing in separate realms for years, the maxim that
it takes water to produce energy and energy to produce water has
prompted a re-thinking of management strategies, including an
emphasis on renewable energy use by water agencies.
This printed issue of Western Water looks at the energy
requirements associated with water use and the means by which
state and local agencies are working to increase their knowledge
and improve the management of both resources.
This printed issue of Western Water examines
desalination – an issue that is marked by great optimism and
controversy – and the expected role it might play as an
alternative water supply strategy.
This printed copy of Western Water examines climate change –
what’s known about it, the remaining uncertainty and what steps
water agencies are talking to prepare for its impact. Much of the
information comes from the October 2007 California Climate Change
and Water Adaptation Summit sponsored by the Water Education
Foundation and DWR and the November 2007 California Water Policy
Conference sponsored by Public Officials for Water and
Environmental Reform.
Hydropower generation is prevalent in the West, where rapidly
flowing river systems have been tapped for generations to produce
electricity. Hydropower is a clean, steady and reliable energy
source, but the damming of rivers has exacted a toll on the
environment, affecting, among other things, the migration of fish
to vestigial spawning grounds. Many of those projects are due to
be relicensed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
The California power crisis has made international headlines. But
what is the link between water and power in California? How is
the state’s dry spell affecting its hydropower generation? How
has the electric crisis affected water users in the state? These
questions and others are addressed in this issue of Western
Water.
