Key facts
- Water UK has criticized the UK government's AI growth plans for not accounting for datacentre water needs.
- Datacentres require significant water for cooling, and many are being built in water-stressed regions of England.
- Water UK warned that new datacentre growth in these areas may be impossible without policy changes.
- Some datacentres are requesting millions of litres of water daily, comparable to the demand of a market town.
- The government plans to triple datacentre capacity by 2030, potentially increasing daily water usage significantly.
- Concerns exist that datacentres, designated critical national infrastructure, could be prioritized over households for water during shortages.
The UK's ambition to become a leader in artificial intelligence is facing a significant hurdle: a lack of sufficient water resources, according to the water industry. Water UK, the trade body representing water companies, has issued a stark warning that current government forecasts for water supply are 'fatally flawed' as they fail to account for the substantial water demands of datacentres.
Datacentres require vast amounts of water for cooling systems to manage the heat generated by servers. Water UK highlighted that government strategies for AI growth, including policy for AI growth zones and action plans, make no mention of water requirements. Similarly, the Environment Agency's latest national framework for water resources also omitted any estimate of datacentre water needs. The trade body expressed concern that there is an underlying assumption that the country will always have enough water for its economic needs, which it refutes.
Concerns are amplified by reports indicating England could face a 5 billion litre per day shortfall in public water supplies by 2055. Water UK pointed out that many datacentres are already being built in water-stressed regions, particularly in the south and east of England, where hosepipe bans are already in effect due to prolonged heat and lack of rainfall. The trade body warned that without policy changes, new datacentre growth in these areas may become impossible, as increasing water supply requires either harmful environmental extraction or the lengthy construction of new infrastructure like reservoirs, which can take up to 15 years.
Affinity Water, which serves Slough, a region with a high concentration of datacentres, reported that some facilities are requesting up to 3 million litres of water per day, equivalent to the peak demand of 3,500 homes. This highlights a mismatch between planning frameworks designed for household growth and the immense needs of commercial users. Water UK estimated that datacentres currently use 6.6 million litres of drinking water daily in England, a figure that could surge to 19.8 million litres per day by 2030 if the government's ambition to triple datacentre capacity is realized. Jon Chappel, Water UK's deputy director, described this situation as 'unforgivable' and a 'genuine failing of government'.