News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and electricity usage. Parent comment

Re:Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and e... by carefree-bob on Sunday October 04, 2026 @06:08PM (#49958403)
Most data centers are closed loop systems, they circulate the water over and over again.

You understand, the water isn't used up? It's not even used up in agriculture. Even when you drink a glass of water, the water doesn't actually disappear, soon someone else will be drinking it. The same water that was on the earth when the dinosaurs walked the planet is still on the earth today. No need to panic about someone using water.

The only reason to be concerned is if someone is mixing the water with other chemicals at a rate faster than the natural filtration and then not paying for the treatment to purify the water again. But that is not an issue with data centers. Merely using water is a concern only for people who don't understand how matter is preserved, but a school physics book should dispel those concerns.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and e... by alpaca128 on Sunday October 04, 2026 @06:38PM (#49958664)
Sure the water is still somewhere, but its location is important for future use. US water reservoirs are at problematically low levels already.

> Most data centers are closed loop systems, they circulate the water over and over again.

The linked article talks about >500 million gallons used by one large Google AI datacenter in a year. It's nice that most are closed loop systems, but if it's such a common thing to do then why isn't it done by default with all those AI datacenters? How cheap is water for Google that recirculating it is not a no-brainer?

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and e... by jeffbee on Sunday October 04, 2026 @08:24PM (#49959413)
"Recirculating" water isn't thermodynamically the same. Evaporating the water is THE POINT of the system. You can make closed-loop coolers but they use more energy.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and e... by alpaca128 on Monday October 05, 2026 @04:09AM (#49962011)
Which makes the often repeated excuse "Closed loop datacenters exist" to refute water use concerns a bit nonsensical.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and e... by jeffbee on Monday October 05, 2026 @11:31AM (#49966190)
It's all contextual. If the energy inputs are carbon-free and local water is scarce, then for that given situation a closed-loop system might make sense. People are building such a thing in Tucson, Arizona right now.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and e... by adzm on Sunday October 04, 2026 @06:23PM (#49958556)
> It's not even used up in agriculture.

However, the source of the water can be "used up" faster than it can be replenished, such as in the case of some aquifers

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and e... by mik1998 on Sunday October 04, 2026 @06:25PM (#49958572)
That’s not entirely correct. Overall water is preserved but local sources of freshwater can be depleted or contaminated, which raises the cost of water.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and e... by tbrownaw on Sunday October 04, 2026 @07:58PM (#49959227)
> The same water that was on the earth when the dinosaurs walked the planet is still on the earth today.

Nope. Plants turn water into oxygen and (the H part of) hydrocarbons, and animals turn those back into water. And after that, the result is different water than the cycle started with.

[ Parent | on HN ]