There is a lot of misinformation floating around on the internet and elsewhere concerning the impact of data center development on energy costs and water usage. Some of it is peddled by the same groups that oppose virtually any major development, whether it’s a power line, a new highway, a pipeline, or a shopping mall. Here are some of the actual facts concerning data center impacts.

While data centers will require substantial amounts of power for the servers and for cooling, the data centers themselves will directly pay for the power they consume and the cost of the power generating, and distribution facilities built to serve them. An example of this can be found in the rate case filed by WE Energies for service to the Microsoft facility at Mount Pleasant, which is pending approval by the PSC. The new energy infrastructure investment driven by data center development will be a substantial benefit to utility investors as well.

Data centers will use a modest amount of water. However, the facilities use a closed loop system for cooling which reuses water rather than discharging it. As a result, a typical data center will use less water in a year than a typical golf course will use in a week. Data centers are locating near Lake Michigan not for access to water but rather to take advantage of the “cooler near the lake” phenomenon which reduces their need for active cooling.

Data center development is also good for our economy, our communities, and our state as a whole. They will create thousands of construction jobs and additional indirect jobs at suppliers, vendors, and subcontractors. In addition, the data technicians employed directly by data centers will earn a median income of more than $75,000. Property and other taxes paid by data centers are expected to reduce residential property tax burdens in host communities while funding improvements in schools, infrastructure, and essential services.  

The bottom line is that the data centers being developed in Wisconsin will have minimal environmental impact while creating high paying jobs, tax relief and public infrastructure investment, and cleaner, more efficient energy delivery.