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
WASHINGTON — The environmental footprint of data centers already rivals some of the world’s largest countries, according to a United Nations University report, which also predicts their water and energy use and pollution will double in just four years as use of artificial intelligence grows.
Last year, global data centers used 448 trillion watt-hours of electricity, more than all but 10 countries of the world, said the report issued Wednesday. That electricity use produced about 208 million tons (189 million metric tons) of carbon dioxide, about the same amount as Argentina, and producing that much energy consumed about 1.2 trillion gallons (4.5 trillion liters) of water, according to the report on the environmental consequences of AI’s energy use.
