UN calculates nation-sized environmental footprints for AI and data centers
UN calculates nation-sized environmental footprints for AI and data centers
Publish Date: 2026-06-03 10:42:00
Source Domain: www.washingtonpost.com
- The environmental footprint of data centers is now comparable to some of the world’s largest countries, as highlighted in a United Nations University report.
- According to the report, global data centers consumed 448 trillion watt-hours of electricity last year, more than all but 10 countries globally.
- The carbon dioxide emissions from this electricity use were approximately 208 million tons, roughly the same amount as Argentina.
- Data centers used about 1.2 trillion gallons (4.5 trillion liters) of water in the past year to produce this energy.
- The report predicts that data centers’ water and energy use, as well as their associated pollution, will double within four years due to the increasing use of artificial intelligence.
