California Webinar Urges Water Rules as Tulare, Kings AI Sites Await Review

Rural California communities are being urged to require the details that shape a data center’s local water demand before a project moves toward formal review: annual use, cooling design, water source and wastewater treatment. The advice comes as proposed edge-node facilities at fairgrounds in Tulare and Kings counties have drawn resident opposition but have not been formally considered by their boards.

The recommendations came from an Aug. 27 Agri-Pulse webinar on how rural communities can limit data-center effects on local resources. Mike Turner, a Loudoun County, Virginia supervisor, urged residents and elected leaders to set boundaries with developers rather than treat the decision as simply for or against development.

Cooling is central to that scrutiny. Communities should distinguish air-cooled, open-loop water-cooled and closed-loop systems. AI data centers can require substantially more energy and water than traditional facilities, depending on cooling; their graphics processing units can require advanced water-cooled systems, while traditional data centers often use air cooling.

• Require developers to state annual water use.
• Identify the cooling system and whether water would be recycled or potable.
• Require a plan for wastewater treatment.

10%Potable water used by data centers

Turner said data centers use 10% of Loudoun County’s potable water.

About 253Data centers cited by Turner

Turner said the county has about 253 AI data centers, which he described as the world’s highest concentration.

A closed-loop system moves water continuously through a circuit. Turner said most Loudoun data centers use that design. He said it needs a large initial water charge but may not need more water for years, and argued that modern facilities should use closed-loop systems.

The Tulare and Kings proposals are described as shipping-container-sized edge-node AI data centers with closed-loop cooling. Global Stack USA says the facilities would not require municipal or community water connections. That is a developer statement, and the fairground boards have not formally considered the projects.

The proposals were not expected to return for fairground-board discussion for several months. Turner also warned elected officials against signing nondisclosure agreements with developers, arguing that secrecy can cost them residents’ trust.