Photo by kian zhang on Unsplash
by Christine Muller
The incredible usefulness and the manifold dangers of Artificial Intelligence are being widely discussed these days. These are very important topics, but this article aims to shed light on another highly consequential aspect of AI that receives relatively little attention: its environmental impact.
“Artificial intelligence (AI) model training and deployment occur mainly in data centres.”(1) And data centers’ environmental impacts are significant:
- Data centers require enormous amounts of water to cool their equipment, several million gallons of water per day! Can you imagine that? Water scarcity is a worsening problem in many places because of climate change: Droughts are becoming more severe. Rainfall is often less frequent, and when it rains, the water comes down in such large volumes that it just runs off because the dried-out soil is unable to absorb it. Due to higher temperatures, there is also more evaporation. Water scarcity affects agriculture, energy supply (hydropower and cooling water of nuclear power plants), the health of rivers and fisheries, and last, but not least, drinking water for people. Can humanity afford so much water to run these data centers?
- Data centers require a lot of energy! In 2024, they were responsible for 1.5% of global electricity consumption. However, that amount is increasing very quickly and steeply. “From 2024 to 2030, data centre electricity consumption grows by around 15% per year, more than four times faster than the growth of total electricity consumption from all other sectors.”(1) AI driven electricity demand is multiplying energy consumption rapidly. And the science is clear: Humanity must reduce its energy consumption in order to successfully get away from the burning of fossil fuels which heats up our planet.
- In addition, large data centers can be harmful to local communities and their environment, as explained in the 20-minute video “Hyperscaled” (Vimeo.com).
So, what can we do in our own daily lives in addition to advocating for laws and regulations that help the responsible development and use of AI and data centers? We can reduce our personal use of AI to the areas of service where we really need it most and find other information in more “traditional ways”, such as with search engines. This brings us back to the first sustainable living tip in the January 2017 Wilmette Institute newsletter, updated below with new information for 2025.
Search Engines
Instead of using Google to search for an answer to your question, use the search engine Ecosia (www.ecosia.org/). You will get the answer you need. More importantly, Ecosia will plant a tree for every search you make. Ecosia does not plant environmentally harmful monocultures, but “grows over 500 different native species where they are needed most and always in collaboration with local communities.”(2) Forests are important for biodiversity and water security. They are also good for the climate (they absorb carbon dioxide) and make for happy people. In nine months, one Baha’i “planted” 507 trees with Ecosia.
While it is a coincidence, it is meaningful to refer to this first Sustainable Living Tip written nine years ago, because next month will be the last one. Look out for it!
Sources:
(1) “Energy demand from AI” – IEA (International Energy Agency) website
(2) “Our tree planting approach” (Ecosia website)
