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Water Impact in Central Texas

Proposed data centers along the I-35 corridor would draw millions of gallons per day from the same water sources that serve Central Texas communities — during Stage 3 drought conditions when residents face mandatory restrictions.

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How data centers use water

Running servers generates enormous heat. Data centers cool their servers using evaporative cooling towers — the same technology as large industrial facilities. Water is sprayed over hot coils; it evaporates, carrying heat away. That water is gone.

How we estimate water demand

When a developer discloses their own water figures — in a permit application, development agreement, or regulatory filing — we use those directly. When figures are not disclosed, we calculate estimates from proposed IT capacity using published industry benchmarks:

Direct cooling: 9,000–13,000 gal/day per MW
Based on WUE 1.8–2.5 L/kWh (water use efficiency) at 80% capacity utilization. The upper bound reflects Central Texas summer heat — among the highest thermal loads in the U.S. LBNL/Shehabi et al. 2016; LBNL 2024 update; Uptime Institute 2016
Indirect water (ERCOT grid power): 0.26–0.55 gal/kWh
Water consumed by power plants supplying the Texas grid. The actual 2025 figure is likely lower (~0.15–0.35 gal/kWh) given ~36% wind/solar in ERCOT — we use the higher range conservatively. Scanlon et al. 2013
Indirect water (on-site gas generation): 0.3–0.5 gal/kWh
When a project builds its own natural gas plant, that water is consumed locally from the same supply serving nearby residents. Scanlon et al. 2013

Each project on the tracker shows its estimate confidence tier (Disclosed, Proxy, or Estimated). See the full methodology →

Cumulative projected demand

If all 34 tracked proposals are built, combined daily water demand would reach the totals below. The dashboard breaks demand down by water source region and by individual project.

Cumulative Water Impact · 34 Proposals Tracked

81–162 MGD

total projected daily water demand if all 34 proposals are built

269,223–538,611 households' worth of water per day833–1666% of San Marcos daily city use
20 projects with disclosed data
4 projects with estimates
10 projects with no water data (excluded from total)

Impact by Water Source Region

Edwards Aquifer Region

Bexar, Comal & Hays Counties · 15 projects

Direct cooling8.6–12.3 MGD
Total (incl. power)17.9–33 MGD
Aquifer recharge (drought year)200 MGD
San Marcos city total9.7 MGD
Municipal withdrawals (total)209 MGD

Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer

Caldwell County · 4 projects

Direct cooling15.4–36.6 MGD
Total (incl. power)43.4–94.8 MGD
Sustainable capacity (PCCD MAG)31.9 MGD
Current actual use2.3 MGD
Annual recharge (within PCCD)11.2 MGD

Proposed DCs represent 41.2× current county groundwater use at high estimate.

Guadalupe River System

Guadalupe County · 1 project

Direct cooling3.2–4.7 MGD
Total (incl. power)5–8.5 MGD
GBRA delivery capacity40 MGD

Palomino Alpha specifies recycled water per development agreement

Colorado River / Highland Lakes

Travis & Williamson Counties · 14 projects

Direct cooling8–11.7 MGD
Total (incl. power)14.4–25.3 MGD

Stage 3 drought context: San Marcos residents are restricted to once-per-week watering. These proposed data centers face no equivalent restrictions. Total known proposed capacity: 10.0 GW. 10 projects with unknown MW capacity excluded from total — actual demand may be higher. See methodology →

Key:DisclosedProxyEstimateNo data

What this means for your community

Stage 3 drought restrictions apply to residents — not to industrial water users like data centers. The comparison below shows proposed data center demand against San Marcos’s entire city water supply.

Stage 3 Drought · Central Texas

You’re cutting back. They’re not.

While San Marcos residents live under Stage 3 mandatory water restrictions, proposed data centers would draw millions of gallons per day — water the aquifer doesn’t have to spare.

1251

gal/person/day

San Marcos normal use — already below Texas average of 150

1,292,6662,4

residents’ worth of water

consumed by all proposed data centers at max estimated daily capacity

1666%2,3,4

of total city water use

what all 34 proposed data centers combined could demand

What Stage 3 means for you6

  • No sprinkler or automatic irrigation except bi-weekly, overnight
  • No car washing at home
  • No fountain or decorative water feature operation
  • Fines for water waste, runoff, or unrepaired leaks
  • Soaker/drip irrigation limited to one day per week
  • Impervious surface washing limited to once per week

Next steps

Browse tracked projects

See individual project data, timelines, and documents for every proposal we follow in the seven-county I-35 corridor.

View the tracker →

Make your voice heard

Write to your elected officials, sign the petition, and show up to hearings where your voice has real weight.

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