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deepmind.google·6d ago
AI Engineering
Hacker News·8d ago·5 min read
Improper redaction reveals Google Data Center water and electricity usage
TL;DR
Improper redaction of a report revealed that Google's Agate LLC data center in Lincoln uses 52.65 megawatts of electricity and 13 million gallons of water annually. This highlights transparency issues regarding resource consumption in data centers.
✦ Why It Matters
Evaluate your own data center's transparency practices regarding resource usage and consider public reporting.
Key Takeaways
- Understand local regulations on data center reporting requirements.
- Ensure proper data handling to avoid improper redaction.
- Monitor resource usage to align with state compliance.
- Evaluate potential tax incentives available for data centers.
Full Summary
Nebraska data centers must submit annual reports detailing their water and electricity usage, but Google claimed this information as trade secrets. However, improper redaction allowed the discovery of specific figures, including 52.65 megawatts of electricity and 13.299 megagallons of water used by the Lincoln data center, Agate LLC.
This amount of water is equivalent to filling about 20 Olympic-size swimming pools. The total water usage reported by six data centers in the state reached 765 million gallons last year.
Additionally, the reports revealed expected tax refunds for Google data centers, with Agate LLC anticipating $55,822,472 for 2025. The findings highlight the need for transparency in resource usage by large data centers, especially as they impact local infrastructure and resources.