Amazon just reported its total data center water usage for the first time. The number is 2.5 billion gallons in a single year. That is 3,800 Olympic swimming pools required just to stop servers from overheating. The company noted a 2 percent drop from last year. But global averages hide local reality. These facilities often sit in drought-prone areas. Residents are watching utility bills rise. Local water pressure drops. Utah just passed a law forcing new data centers to reveal exactly what they consume. People are starting to notice. Only 14 percent of Americans now say they would accept a data center near their home. The cloud is very thirsty.

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