Michigan Data Center Water Usage and Policy Reform

proposed

The project involves the siting and operation of data centers in Michigan, which use significant amounts of water for cooling servers, ranging from 150,000 to over 5 million gallons per day. The data centers draw water from municipal supplies, groundwater wells, and surface waters, impacting local water resources. The project has exposed gaps in Michigan's water policies, including lack of disclosure, inadequate permitting standards, and disconnected management of groundwater and surface water. There is an opportunity to modernize water protection policies at local, state, and regional levels due to community pushback and coalition building between rural residents and environmental advocates.