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The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
byHadlock ( 143607 ) writes:
It sounds like they're permanently destroying water or something. Many datacenters line the colombia river, which is both an excellent hydroelectric and limitless water supply, and then the other big cluster is in the SE near Virgina and into the Carolinas, which are frequently flooding,
764.6 billion liters of water is about the same water usage as NYC uses in 200 days
764.6 billion liters of water is about 8 days worth of water used by California agriculture
byrsilvergun ( 571051 ) writes:
When a data center is done with the water it is not potable anymore and it is extraordinarily expensive to make it potable again. To the point where it might be cheaper to do desalinization.
None of this is necessary but it is cheaper and these data centers are already unprofitable right now and not replacing enough wages to make them profitable.
So yes molecularly speaking the water still exists but it's not in a state usable by human beings and we do not have the capacity to put it back in that stat
bysabbede ( 2678435 ) writes:
Why isn't it potable anymore? It just ran through some pipes, probably copper tubes, like it does in homes and businesses. It was heated, but that doesn't make it non-potable. If that were the case the coffee I just drank would have killed me.
byrsilvergun ( 571051 ) writes:
Google the phrase "why can't data center water be drunk?"
They treat it with chemicals to prevent it from corroding the pipes. Removing those chemicals would be extremely expensive.
I think one of the major problems is people can't wrap their heads around why they aren't going to have electricity and water because there isn't any real good reason for it. And since we all grew up with civilization the idea that the wealthiest capitalists on the planet are going to eliminate both capitalism and civiliza
bysabbede ( 2678435 ) writes:
Well, that's a problem that's pretty damn easy to solve. Just read up a bit on what they treat for, and wouldn't you know it - NONE OF IT IS NEW. They face no issues that haven't already been dealt with non-toxically. None. I grew up with well water that needed almost as much treatment, knew people who needed more. Sometimes they have to soften it, sometimes they use descaler (could be non-toxic or avoided completely), sometimes they need to balance the pH. Big frikkin deal.
It's an already-solved problem. Worst case, they put a reverse osmosis filter on the outlet too.
These data centers aren't going to be there in 50 years. If they're still around in 15, their needs will be very different. They don't need to worry about the plumbing breaking in thirty years. If they don't need to worry about how long the plumbing lasts, they don't need to treat the water in a way that renders it non-potable. If they are, I bet you anything that it's because of a regulation, not a practical need.
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