It wrote that the government \u201cmakes not a single mention of water\u201d in its policy for delivering AI growth zones, its AI for science strategy or its AI opportunities action plan.<\/p>\n
It added that the Environment Agency\u2019s most recent national framework for water resources<\/a>, published in June 2025, also failed to include an estimate of the water demands of datacentres.<\/p>\n \u201cThere appears to be an assumption that the country will always have enough water for its economic needs,\u201d the briefing said. \u201cNothing could be further from the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n In May, a House of Lords report<\/a> said England faced a 5bn litre a day shortfall<\/a> for public water supplies by 2055.<\/p>\n Water UK said datacentres were already being built in water-stressed areas, with more than three-quarters located in the south and east of England. Millions of people in these regions have been placed under a hosepipe ban by water companies after prolonged extreme heat<\/a> and lack of rainfall.<\/p>\n Water UK said it could take up to 15 years to plan and build a new reservoir. Photograph: Bloomberg\/Getty Images<\/p>\n The trade body said any new datacentre growth in these areas \u201cmay be impossible\u201d without policy change because of existing pressure on the network.<\/p>\n \u201cAs leakage and demand targets are already very ambitious, the only solution to deliver new supply is to increase the amount of water taken from the environment \u2013 which may be harmful \u2013 or to build new supplies, and major reservoirs can take 15 years to plan and build,\u201d Water<\/a> UK wrote.<\/p>\n It added: \u201cWater companies have cut leakage by around 40% since privatisation and plan to reduce it by a further 17% by 2030.\u201d<\/p>\n However, Greenpeace said last week that water companies were wasting five times more water through leaky pipes<\/a> than even a national hosepipe ban would save.<\/p>\n The UK\u2019s highest concentration of datacentres is in Slough, which is served by Affinity Water. About 125 datacentres are proposed or under construction in Affinity\u2019s region, much of which is subject to a hosepipe ban.<\/p>\n In May, the company told MPs<\/a> that some of these datacentres were requesting up to 3m litres of water a day, equivalent to the peak water demand of 3,500 homes.<\/p>\n \u201cThe planning framework is built around household growth and per-capita consumption, and has not adapted to commercial users whose water needs can match those of a market town,\u201d Affinity said in a written submission to the environmental audit select committee.<\/p>\n Because of Environment Agency permitting, datacentres are currently required to make use of drinking water only. Water UK estimated that datacentres in England use 6.6m litres of drinking water every day. With the government\u2019s ambition to triple datacentre capacity by 2030, this could increase to 19.8m litres a day.<\/p>\n Jon Chappel, Water UK\u2019s deputy director, said this was \u201cunforgivable\u201d and a \u201cgenuine failing of government\u201d.<\/p>\n England\u2019s current water shortfall is 220m litres more a day than was assumed in water forecasts. Water UK said this deficit was currently being met by \u201caccepting a greater risk of environmental harm, and restrictions on water use in the event of drought\u201d.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Sign up to Down to Earth<\/p>\n The planet’s most important stories. Get all the week’s environment news – the good, the bad and the essential<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Similar concerns have been raised in Ireland, where hosepipe bans have ignited criticism of water companies and the government over a lack of clarity about datacentres\u2019 water usage.<\/p>\n The government has designated datacentres as critical national infrastructure, on the basis that their loss or compromise could result in \u201cmajor detrimental impact on the availability, integrity or delivery of essential services\u201d and \u201csignificant impact on national security, national defence, or the functioning of the state\u201d.<\/p>\n Oliver Hayes, head of big tech and campaigns at the campaign group Global Action Plan<\/a>, said it was not clear why datacentres had been given this status, but that water companies may be powerless to restrict their water use as a result. This could risk datacentres being prioritised over households at times of peak water demand.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it is highly likely that we\u2019re going to end up seeing datacentres that are actually running chatbots, or enabling people to do benign and very wasteful, pointless things, protected and given favourable treatment when it comes to resources,\u201d Hayes said.<\/p>\n Chappel said Water UK had asked the government to publish a drought hierarchy to set out which sectors are prioritised in times of water shortages, but that ministers had yet to do so.<\/p>\n \u201cWithout this there will be a trade-off across society\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Hosepipe bans have come under scrutiny in the light of datacentres\u2019 vast water usage. Photograph: Hugh R Hastings\/Getty Images<\/p>\n At the end of June, water companies, the water regulator Ofwat, the Environment Agency, the Met Office and the Welsh government-sponsored body Natural Resources Wales announced a \u00a375m campaign to encourage people to use less water<\/a>. Water use per person in England and Wales is among the highest in Europe.<\/p>\n The government was expected to publish a national policy statement for AI growth in February, providing an overarching strategy and defining how cumulative impacts are considered, but this has been delayed.<\/p>\n A government spokesperson said: \u201cThe environment and sustainable development must go hand-in-hand and we will protect our water supply while unlocking growth, including looking at alternatives or ways to minimise impact on supplies and output of wastewater from datacentres.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are also taking decisive measures to secure water supplies and meet higher demand, including record levels of infrastructure investment and building nine new reservoirs.\u201d<\/p>\n Get in touch<\/p>\n Contact us about this story<\/p>\n The best public interest journalism relies on first-hand accounts from people in the know. If you have something to share on this subject, you can contact us confidentially using the following methods:<\/p>\n Secure Messaging in the Guardian app<\/p>\n The Guardian app has a tool to send tips about stories. Messages are end to end encrypted and concealed within the routine activity that every Guardian mobile app performs. This prevents an observer from knowing that you are communicating with us at all, let alone what is being said.<\/p>\n If you don\u2019t already have the Guardian app, download it (iOS<\/a>\/Android<\/a>) and go to the menu. Select \u2018Secure Messaging\u2019. <\/p>\n SecureDropIf you can safely use the tor network without being observed or monitored you can send messages and documents to the Guardian via our SecureDrop platform.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1782402554_536_500.jpg\")
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