Data Centers and Water: People, Policy and Planning
The session co hosted by GuruJal and Ivy+ alumni network
As data centers expand, their water requirements are becoming an important part of the conversation around sustainable digital infrastructure. This session examines the trade-offs between digital growth and water security through three key areas:
Siting and water risk: How water availability, basin stress, and competing local demand should inform where data centers are built.
Cooling and resource trade-offs: How different cooling approaches affect water and energy use, from air and evaporative cooling to liquid cooling and emerging technologies.
Measurement and disclosure: What credible water-use reporting should capture, including withdrawals, consumption, water sources, recycled-water use, and local impacts.
Bringing together perspectives from industry, utilities, regulators, investors, and communities, the session explores how digital infrastructure can grow while remaining responsive to local water realities and maintaining its social and environmental license to operate.