Where power-hungry data centers could spark next US health disaster

A growing network of at least 5,000 data centers across the US is becoming a hidden public health threat, scientists have warned.

That is because the energy-hungry backbone of artificial intelligence pumps out dangerous pollutants that can cause asthma, cancer and even death.

Researchers say that as demand for AI and cloud computing surges, pollution from the diesel generators that keep these facilities operating could soon rival emissions from entire industries, with Caltech estimating 1,300 premature deaths annually linked to the toxic plumes.

The backup generators, used to maintain ‘uptime’ during power failures, are often diesel-powered, releasing clouds of fine-particle pollution that spread across state lines. 

In total, the emissions could cost the US $20 billion each year through health problems and lost productivity, according to researchers.

The energy needed to train a single Meta large language model equals 10,000 car trips from Los Angeles to New York City, and individual data centers can consume as much power as small cities.

Professor Francesca Dominici of Harvard University warned that the health implications of these sites remain overlooked, telling Daily Mail: ‘As the number of hyperscale data centers continues to demand increasing amounts of energy, we must start considering their environmental and health impacts on surrounding communities, an issue that, right now, is largely missing from the conversation.’

Diesel exhaust contains tiny particles linked to heart attacks, lung disease, and cancer, and researchers say their concentration is highest around data center clusters such as Northern Virginia’s ‘Data Center Alley’ and West Virginia, where facilities consume city-scale power levels.

In Virginia, dozens of data centers have been approved or built, among the 1,240 spread across the US.

‘This can be particularly harmful when a large cluster of data centers runs their diesel generators for demand response and releases a large amount of NOx that creates public health risks,’ Dominici said.

During a recent heatwave, many centers switched on generators simultaneously for ‘load shedding,’ releasing a surge of emissions. 

Dominici added: ‘The direct health impacts are concentrated in regions with many data centers, such as Northern Virginia, where diesel emissions are significant, especially during demand response events.

 ‘The indirect impact is broader. Many of the hardest-hit communities neither host large data centers nor directly benefit economically from AI data centers, such as through tax revenues.

‘For example, several counties in West Virginia are among the most affected, because many coal-fired power plants in West Virginia are supplying electricity to data centers in the neighboring state of Virginia.’

Caltech researchers found that pollution from backup generators drifts across county and state lines, with emissions from Northern Virginia affecting Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Washington DC.

These states also have their own data centers, generating their own pollution, with more than 70 data centers believed to be in New York, for example.

They estimated public health costs between $190 million and $260 million annually, potentially rising tenfold if emissions reach their legal maximums.

Studies by Harvard and Caltech also found that data centers used four percent of all US electricity in 2023, generating 105 million tons of carbon dioxide, with 56 percent powered by fossil fuels.

According to the Kapor Foundation, tech hubs in California, home to 32 of the world’s top 50 AI companies, overlap heavily with areas suffering poor public health. 

There are more than 300 data centers across California, with concentrations in Santa Clara. 

Cecilia Merriman of the foundation noted: ‘To be clear, this correlation does not prove (nor necessarily suggest) that data centers caused the poor public health outcomes; rather, it is evident that data centers are clustered in already polluted areas with such outcomes.’

By 2030, researchers said the data center industry’s public health impact could double that of steelmaking and rival all vehicles in California, driven by nitrogen oxides and fine particulate matter.

Professor Amin Al-Habaibeh of Nottingham Trent University said that the risks go beyond air pollution.

‘The other environmental risks of data centers are heat islands and water supplies,’ he said.

‘The heat produced by the servers and computer systems will need to be dissipated, and if water is used, then the facilities might need significant volumes of water for open-loop cooling systems.

‘Closed-loop cooling systems, similar to a car coolant system, consume less water. In either case, the use of rainwater or greywater to compensate for water use could reduce the water-related environmental impact.’