#energyconsumption — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #energyconsumption, aggregated by home.social.
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#Massachusetts #datacenters need approval before getting a permit following new executive order
by Amal Elhelw, Tue, September 8, 2026
"Gov. #MauraHealey is now putting Massachusetts among a growing number of states taking a closer look at how data centers are built and who gets a say in where they go.
"For years, Massachusetts has promoted itself as a place for the technology industry to grow, including data centers powering the #AIBoom.
"As those projects have gotten bigger, so have the concerns about their impact on #electricity costs, the #environment, and local communities.
"Back in February, Gov. Healey said data centers need to power themselves, pay for it, 'and do it in a way that doesn't harm residents.'
"More than six months later, Healey said she's putting local communities in control.
"On Tuesday, she signed an executive order requiring local approval for new data center infrastructure.
" 'Unless a community says yes to a data center, we're saying no,' Healey said.
"The move comes after the Governor first paused new applications for the state's data center sales tax exemption in June, saying stronger protections were needed.
"That tax break was created by a law Healey signed in 2024, giving qualified data centers a potential 20-year sales tax exemption.
"On Tuesday, Healey addressed that, saying she signed that package but did not include the tax exemption herself.
" 'As I've seen things, I just didn't think that it was right for that sales tax exemption to apply in the midst of what we're dealing with right now, which is a lot of concern across communities in Massachusetts and this country about the impact data centers are having or could have,' Gov. Healey said.
"Tuesday's executive order also requires developers to prove that they're not going to harm the environments or communities where they want to build. They also have to provide their own clean energy on day one, and if they can't, they have to pay ratepayers for the energy they consume until their own supply is in place.
"Republican candidate for Governor, Mike Minogue agrees that Massachusetts is in an energy crisis.
" 'I would always let a local community have input, but in reality, today, we're seeing more override votes than ever before just for operations,' Minogue said. "What I want to do is give more money back to the towns and cities if they will reduce the stretch codes, which destroys the opportunities for many builders and developers.'
"A proposed data center in #WestfieldMA has yet to seek permits from state agencies. Should the project come to the state, the developer would need to present a Community Benefits Agreement and its plans to meet the state's water and energy expectations.
"The state currently has about 50 data centers, meaning Tuesday's announcement could help determine how many more Massachusetts is willing to take on."
Source:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/mass-data-centers-approval-getting-205657908.html#USPol #MassachusettsPol #NoDatacenters #AIDatacenters #NoisePollution #EnergyConsumption
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#SamAltman and others at #OpenAI are trying wicked hard to convince folks that they're all about saving #Nature... Buying #JackieAndShadow's home and now this... Um, sorry Sam and friends. It doesn't make up for the #NoisePollution, #WaterPollution, pollution from #EnergyConsumption , etc. for the #AIHouseOfCards... But folks are seeing right through that!
#OpenAI flew influencers to a #NatureResort to fix its image. The internet called it #greenwashing.
OpenAI flew a group of influencers to a $2,000-a-night wellness resort to warm up the public mood around #AI. Days before a reported $500bn #Datacentre deal, the internet called it greenwashing, and the creators got the backlash.
August 4, 2026
"The event, branded 'Summer Camp,' ran at Wildflower Farms, a resort in New York’s #HudsonValley where rooms can top $2,000 a night, Business Insider reported. Creators posted farm-to-table dinners under bistro lights, a beekeeping session, and classes on OpenAI’s tools. They went home with branded canvas bags and jars of honey.
"The videos were soft-focus and lighthearted. The comments were not. Across TikTok, Reddit, X and Instagram, people called the trip 'dystopian' and accused OpenAI of greenwashing. One commenter told TechCrunch the issue was timing: '#TheWorldIsOnFire. It’s not a great time to brag about your $5,000-a-night suite.' "
Read more:
https://thenextweb.com/news/openai-summer-camp-influencer-retreat-greenwashing-backlash#NoDatacenters #TheWorldIsBurning #USPol #AISucks #BigPower #BigData #ResistDataCenters #PowerCorruptionAndLies #AIDatacenters
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Press Release: Rising #Emissions, Depleting #Water and Vanishing #Land—UN Scientists: #AI Is Threatening #NaturalResources for Billions
By 2030, AI's water use will match the needs of 1.3 billion people while its power use triples that of 650 million, UN University investigation warns
Date Published
3 Jun 2026Excerpt: "Inference, efficiency, and the rebound effect
"Public discussion has largely focused on the energy required to train massive models. Training GPT-3 was estimated to require 1.3 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity, while estimates suggest GPT-4 consumed between 50 and 70 GWh. However, the report reveals this framing is outdated. Once a model is deployed, inference—the continuous running of models to answer everyday user prompts—becomes the dominant cost, accounting for 80 to 90 per cent of total #AI energy use. ChatGPT alone is estimated to process around 2.5 billion prompts per day, translating to roughly 383 GWh of electricity per year for a single product. Offsetting associated carbon emissions would require 2.6 million tree seedlings grown for 10 years, enough trees to cover a land area the size of Manhattan. The water footprint is equivalent to the minimum annual domestic water needs of roughly 500,000 people in Sub-Saharan Africa, and the land footprint is equal to over 800 football fields."
Read more:
https://unu.edu/inweh/news/environmental-cost-of-AIs-Enrgy-use-carbon-water-and-land-footprints#AIBoom #Electricity #Hyperscale #BigTech #BigData #CarbonFootprint #EnvironmentalRacism #EnvironmentalDegradation #NoisePollution #LightPollution #WaterIsLife #AIAgents #BotTraffic #GreenSpaces #Farmland #Prairies #Woodland #TechGiants #ProtectNature #NoDatacenters #EnergyConsumption #USPol #WorldPol #Datacentres
#DatacenterMoratoriums #ArtificialIntelligence -
The #EnvironmentalCost of #ArtificialIntelligence: #Carbon, #Water, and #LandFootprints
#AI’s rapid growth drives huge energy, water, and land use, raising environmental and equity challenges across its global infrastructure.
Date Published 3 Jun 2026
UNU-INWEH Report: Aczel, M., Chamanara, S., Matin, M., Farsi, A., Marwala, T., Madani, K. (2026).
"This report, Environmental Cost of Artificial Intelligence: Carbon, Water and Land Footprints, by the #UnitedNationsUniversity Institute for Water, Environment and Health ( #UNU - #INWEH ) on its 30th anniversary, examines one of the most underexplored consequences of AI’s rapid expansion: the environmental footprints of the energy required to power it. As artificial intelligence becomes embedded in economies, public services, research, communication, and everyday life, it depends on a growing physical infrastructure of #datacenters, advanced #chips, #CoolingSystems, #ElectricityGrids, #WaterResources, land, and #CriticalMineral supply chains. The report shows that AI is not only a digital technology, but also a material system with measurable #EnvironmentalCosts.
"The report moves beyond a carbon-only lens by quantifying the carbon, water, and land footprints associated with the electricity used to train, deploy, and operate AI systems at scale. Its central finding is that AI’s environmental costs depend not only on how much electricity is used, but also on where that electricity is generated and which energy sources power it. Every kilowatt-hour used by AI carries carbon, water, and land implications, and these footprints do not always move in the same direction: low-carbon electricity is not automatically low-water or low-land. The report also shows that AI’s footprint is shaped by both major infrastructure trends, including the rapid growth of data centers, and everyday use patterns, including model choice, output length, modality, and the growing use of text, image, and video generation.
"Importantly, the report frames AI’s environmental footprint as a governance and justice challenge, not only a technical problem. The benefits of AI often flow across borders and sectors, while the environmental burdens of data center siting, electricity demand, water withdrawals, #LandUse, MineralExtraction, and #EWaste can be concentrated in specific communities and regions. To address these risks, the report calls for a responsible AI ecosystem grounded in transparency, efficiency by design, equity and #EnvironmentalJustice, lifecycle responsibility, global cooperation, and sustainable use. By making AI’s carbon, water, and land footprints visible and comparable, the report provides a practical basis for integrating AI into energy, climate, water, and land-use planning, ensuring that innovation advances without shifting environmental costs onto vulnerable communities."
Download PDF:
https://unu.edu/inweh/collection/environmental-cost-of-AIs-Enrgy-Use-Carbon-water-and-land-footprints#AIBoom #Electricity #Hyperscale #BigTech #BigData #CarbonFootprint #EnvironmentalRacism #EnvironmentalDegradation #NoisePollution #LightPollution #WaterIsLife #AIAgents #BotTraffic #GreenSpaces #Farmland #Prairies #Woodland #TechGiants #ProtectNature #NoDatacenters #EnergyConsumption #USPol #WorldPol #Datacentres
#DatacenterMoratoriums -
The #AI boom is gobbling up power faster than ever
By Hannah Beckler, June 7, 2026
Excerpt: "The data center boom is accelerating.
"A Business Insider analysis of US data center permits reveals a staggering escalation in data center power use. Data centers across the US are growing in number and in size. If all data centers permitted through 2025 come online, they will use between 224.3 terawatt-hours and 358.8 terawatt-hours of electricity annually, an increase of 50% over the previous year across the range, Business Insider's analysis found.
"At the midpoint, that's more than all the #electricity used by any one US state in 2024, except Texas.
"The vast majority of this power use is driven by #hyperscale data centers, mammoth facilities that use 40 megawatts or more each, Business Insider estimates.
"#TechGiants have an insatiable appetite for more computing power to fund their AI ambitions. In 2025, permits were issued for 176 new data centers across 34 states — the most new permits in one year since the first was issued in 1976, Business Insider found. Many of them are mammoth facilities destined for rural areas — enormous complexes blanketing #prairies, #GreenSpaces, and #farmland.
"#AmazonCorp's planned 14-building data center complex in #RidgelandMS, would transform nearly 800 acres of rural #woodland. In the village of #MountPleasantWI, Microsoft's nine data center buildings would command a collective footprint of over 5.2 million square feet built on a property nearly the size of New York City's Central Park, according to planning documents. And just outside #EagleMountainOT, #QTS — one of the nation's biggest data center operators — is building one that is expected to demand between 1.9 and 3 terawatt-hours a year once fully online, according to Business Insider's estimate. On average, that's the same amount of electricity used by 227,000 US homes.
"The race by tech companies to reach ever-greater AI ambitions has sparked a sweeping backlash from local residents and state and local officials wary of #Datacenter impacts on the #environment, economy, and #communities. And development-friendly lawmakers could face a reckoning in this year's #midterms, in which data centers are emerging as a key issue for many voters."
https://www.businessinsider.com/us-ai-data-center-power-electricity-use-consumption-2026-6
Archived version:
https://archive.ph/hJXeS#NoDatacenters #AIBoom #EnergyConsumption #NoisePollution #LightPollution #WaterIsLife #USPol #USMidTerms #Elections2026 #Datacentres #DatacenterMoratoriums #BigData #BigTech
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AI boom is driving a $445 billion data center buildout, and it is just getting started
https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://nerds.xyz/2026/03/ai-data-center-buildout/
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Norrsken Foundation is closing on an oversubscribed impact venture fund at 125 million euros - About four years ago, social impact organization Norrsken Foundation launched a small program invest... - http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/DF6eDm7m_JM/ #norrskenfoundation #energyconsumption #venturecapital #healthcare #norrskenvc #volkswagen #startups #einride #finance #energy #klarna #submer #tc