How much water does a data center use?

It depends almost entirely on the cooling system. A large hyperscale facility using conventional evaporative cooling can consume roughly 1 to 5 million gallons of water per day at full load. Closed-loop systems use a small fraction of that — one Wisconsin campus reported peak use near 22,000 gallons per day versus about 5 million for a similar-scale evaporative campus — and some new designs circulate liquid directly to the chip in a sealed loop that uses essentially zero water for cooling. The industry is migrating fast toward closed-loop and air-cooled designs to cut water use.

Do data centers need a lot of water in Texas?

Increasingly, no — but it depends on the design and the site. Water availability still shapes where large campuses can go, and in water-stressed or arid areas it can limit viability. In Texas, sourcing runs through water utilities, groundwater conservation districts, and water rights, and developers now resolve water strategy early in site selection rather than treating it as a downstream problem. Closed-loop and air cooling have reduced day-to-day water demand substantially for new builds.

Can a Texas city or county block a data center?

Local governments have real tools, and many are using them. Since mid-2025, Texas localities have weighed more than 100 data center ordinances — temporary moratoriums, zoning frameworks, and buffer requirements such as setbacks from homes. Some bans and pauses have been challenged in court, and at least one county rescinded its moratorium after a lawsuit. In August 2026 the state ordered a comprehensive audit of data centers connecting to the grid, effectively slowing new projects. Jurisdiction and local sentiment now materially affect whether and when a campus can be permitted.

Development · September 1, 2026 · Steven Owen

Data center water, cooling, and permitting in Texas

After power, the two things that decide a data center site are water and permission — how the campus is cooled, and whether the community will let it be built. On water, the range is enormous and driven almost entirely by cooling design: a hyperscale facility on conventional evaporative cooling can use 1 to 5 million gallons a day, while closed-loop and air-cooled designs cut that to a small fraction — sometimes near zero. On permission, Texas localities have weighed 100-plus data center ordinances since mid-2025, and in August 2026 the state ordered a grid-connection audit that slowed new projects. Both belong in a site’s diligence from day one.

How much water a data center really uses

The cooling system is the single biggest driver of water demand, and the numbers vary by orders of magnitude:

Evaporative cooling — the conventional approach — can consume on the order of millions of gallons per year for each megawatt of IT load; a full-scale campus can reach 1–5 million gallons per day.
Closed-loop cooling recirculates water in a sealed system. One Wisconsin campus reported peak use near 22,000 gallons per day, versus roughly 5 million for a similar-scale evaporative campus.
Direct-to-chip and air cooling — newer designs circulate liquid straight to the chip in a sealed loop, using essentially zero water for cooling. New builds are migrating fast in this direction.

The practical upshot: a modern campus can be far less water-intensive than the headlines suggest — but the design has to be known, because it changes the site’s water requirement completely.

Water in Texas: rights, districts, and sourcing

Even a water-efficient campus needs a sourcing plan, and in Texas that runs through several channels: a public water utility (and its CCN service area), a groundwater conservation district that regulates well production, and surface- or ground-water rights. In the Hill Country, add Edwards Aquifer rules and impervious-cover limits. Developers now resolve water strategy early in site selection rather than treating it as a downstream engineering problem — and a landowner who understands their site’s water position negotiates from a stronger place. This is part of the broader site-selection screen.

Permitting: the local fight is real

Water and power get a project considered; local approval gets it built. Since mid-2025, Texas localities have taken up more than 100 data center ordinances, in three broad flavors:

Moratoriums — temporary pauses on new projects (for example, a county-level pause on new AI data center development).
Zoning and buffer frameworks — permitting requirements and setbacks, such as a 300-foot buffer from residential areas.
Disapproval resolutions — formal statements of opposition that signal a hard permitting road.

Community concerns cluster around noise, light, water use, and property values, and organized opposition regularly turns out at planning and zoning meetings. The legal picture is unsettled: some moratoriums have been challenged, and at least one county rescinded its pause after a lawsuit. Layered on top, the state ordered a comprehensive audit of grid-connecting data centers in August 2026, effectively slowing new approvals pending review. For a landowner, the jurisdiction your land sits in — and its posture toward data centers — now materially affects value and timeline.

What to check before you count on a data center outcome

Cooling assumption. Air/closed-loop vs. evaporative changes the water requirement by orders of magnitude — and the permitting story with it.
Water sourcing. Utility CCN, groundwater district rules, and any aquifer or impervious-cover limits on your tract.
Local posture. Any moratorium, buffer ordinance, or zoning framework in your city or county — and where it stands legally.
Jurisdiction. City limits vs. ETJ vs. unincorporated county changes who reviews the project and how.
Wastewater and stormwater. Discharge, detention, and TCEQ requirements that add cost and time.

How SCORE works the water-and-permitting question

Steven Owen — an engineer with an NYU Stern finance MBA — screens a tract for its water position and permitting exposure alongside power, so you know before you go to market whether a data center outcome is realistic and what could slow it. SCORE maps sourcing, jurisdiction, and local ordinance risk, then takes well-positioned sites to active developers through a direct buyer network. Pair this with powered land & ERCOT and how to sell to a data center developer, and see our Texas focus.

Weighing a data center use for your land?

Tell us where it is. We’ll read the water, jurisdiction, and permitting picture with the power position — and tell you whether it’s realistic, and what it’s worth.

Assess my land Talk to Steven

Figures are directional and dated 2026 (industry water/cooling reporting, state and local policy trackers, news coverage of Texas ordinances and the 2026 state audit). This is general information, not investment, engineering, or legal advice; water sourcing, cooling design, and permitting are site-specific — confirm with civil/water engineering, the relevant districts, and counsel. Related: site selection criteria · powered land & ERCOT · selling land to a developer.