The thirst for data: Australia's water crisis and the rise of datacentres
In the midst of Australia's AI boom, a pressing issue has emerged: the impact of massive datacentres on our precious water resources. With dozens of new investments in Sydney and Melbourne, experts are raising the alarm about the strain on our drinking water supply.
But here's where it gets controversial... Water demand for datacentres in Sydney alone is predicted to surpass Canberra's total drinking water supply within the next decade. That's a staggering thought, isn't it?
Melbourne, too, is facing a similar dilemma. The Victorian government's ambitious plan to become Australia's datacentre capital comes with a hefty price tag - a potential strain on the state's water resources. Hyperscale datacentre applications are already exceeding the water demands of nearly all of Victoria's top 30 business customers combined.
Technology giants like Open AI and Atlassian are pushing for Australia to become a data processing and storage hub. But with over 260 datacentres already operating and more on the way, the impact on our drinking water supply is a growing concern.
Sydney Water estimates that by 2035, up to 250 megalitres of water per day will be needed to service the industry - that's more than Canberra's entire drinking water supply! And this is the part most people miss: the cooling process for these datacentres requires a massive amount of water.
Prof Priya Rajagopalan, director of the Post Carbon Research Centre at RMIT, explains that the water and electricity demands of datacentres depend on the cooling technology used. Evaporative cooling, while losing water through evaporation, is less water-intensive than sealers, which require a huge volume of water for cooling without water loss.
Older datacentres tend to rely on air cooling, but the demand for more computing power has led to higher server rack density, resulting in warmer outputs. This has driven centres to turn to water-based cooling methods.
The amount of water used varies greatly across datacentres. Some, like NextDC, are adopting liquid-to-chip cooling, which directly cools the processor or GPU instead of cooling the entire room. This innovative approach reduces water consumption and allows for greater processing power without a rise in power consumption.
NextDC's power usage effectiveness (PUE) has been a topic of discussion, with their PUE increasing to 1.44 in the last financial year. The company attributes this to the dynamic nature of customer activity and the scaling up of new facilities.
The datacentre industry measures its sustainability using two metrics: water usage effectiveness (WUE) and power usage effectiveness (PUE). These metrics assess the amount of water or power used relative to computing work. While efficient facilities can reduce water and energy consumption, the scale of datacentres means even efficient operations can still use large quantities of resources.
Sydney Water is actively reviewing its estimates of datacentre water use and exploring alternative water sources, such as recycled water and stormwater harvesting, to prepare for future demand. Melbourne Water, in its submission to the Victorian pricing review, noted that hyperscale datacentre operators have projected demands exceeding nearly all top non-residential customers in Melbourne, a concern that has not been accounted for in their demand forecasts or expenditure planning.
The Concerned Waterways Alliance, a network of Victorian community and environment groups, has voiced its concerns about the diversion of drinking water for server cooling, especially given the already stretched water resources in the state. They advocate for the use of recycled water for datacentres and call for a ban on the use of potable drinking water for cooling.
In hotter climates, like much of Australia during summer, datacentres require even more energy or water to maintain cool temperatures. Danielle Francis, manager of customer and policy at the Water Services Association of Australia, emphasizes that there is no one-size-fits-all approach for datacentre energy and water usage due to local constraints.
One datacentre under construction in Sydney's Marsden Park, a 504MW datacentre spanning 20 hectares with six four-storey buildings, aims to set an industry standard with its closed-loop cooling system. This system, filled once at the beginning of its life, operates without ongoing water draw, evaporation, or waste, preserving water while maintaining thermal performance.
However, not everyone is convinced. Planning documents reveal community concerns over the project, with the acting chief executive of the western health district of New South Wales expressing worries about the development's proximity to vulnerable communities and the potential risks during extreme heat weather events.
As Australia navigates its AI boom, the impact of datacentres on our water resources is a complex and crucial issue. What do you think? Should we prioritize sustainable practices in the datacentre industry? Or is the potential economic benefit worth the risk to our water supply? We'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
