In her blog post, Astrid Wynne from TechBuyer emphasizes the importance of making water stewardship a core design principle in data center operations, especially as artificial intelligence drives up cooling demand. The focus on sustainability in data centers is shifting towards considering the impact of water usage, which is crucial for cooling systems.
The Data Centre Alliance’s “Drowning in Data” best practice paper, released in October 2025, highlights the need to assess the water footprint of energy use, avoid excessive freshwater consumption, and maximize water efficiency in cooling systems. With water scarcity affecting billions of people globally, the spotlight is now on the data center industry’s water consumption practices.
Industry guidance provided in the paper outlines actionable principles for reducing water impact, such as evaluating cooling systems, minimizing the water footprint of energy use, and designing with the surrounding environment in mind. As data centers come under increasing scrutiny for their water usage, it is essential for the sector to prioritize water stewardship as a fundamental aspect of sustainable operations moving forward. The conversation around water sustainability in data centers is gaining momentum, and collaborative efforts are needed to address this critical issue effectively.
