That could be what my great great grandpa told his Ute Tribe about the Iron Rails !

I'll make an attempt that those questions:

electricity use - yes, enormous amounts of electricity

water use - highly variable. They must cool the equipment (electricity eventually is turned into heat, which must be moved out of the building). But as I understand it, new ones generally recirculate / reuse their cooling water sorta like the coolant in your car is cycled through repeatedly. So as I understand it the water complaints are mostly overblown for new data centers. But definiately something to watch.

noise - yes

jobs - yes. A lot during construction then just a few direct jobs for a relativley small staff operating the facility. But the operation of the data center enables all the tech you know of today (AI, web sites, e-comerce, etc). So the indirect jobs are uncountable.

build them away from populated areas - YES!!!


IMHO, the best resolution to the data center debate is:
- build them away from populated areas,
- ensure the data center operator FULLY bears the cost of electrical grid expansion (including new power plants years later),
- do not allow emenant domain to take land for data centers without consent
- ensure the water issues carefully scrutinized and the there minimal water consumption from the facility.

With those stipulations, I'm a fan of letting them build as much as they can/want.

X2 SGK

That is pretty accurate from what I have read also.

I have also read that the noise is generally from those plants using natural gas to fire onsite turbines for generation of power .

I have seen it described as a low frequency "hum".

I also think that the groups opposed to data centers are the best indication that we should build them.

Are governments ( Wesley) picking AI data centers as winners?

LOL Mouch ????

We had two projects ( two mines) abandoned here by private investors. Wesley redefined them and picked them as winners after private investors left. Taxpayers are gonna be the losers again.

Moral hazard is all too common

There are lots of data centers around already and have been for quite a while.
AI requires massive ones.
They are the big brain bug of AI.
They utulize a lot of natural resources to run.
laws have recently been passed here to make sure the demand for these resources are both paid fully by the company running the center and that the increased demand for resources like water and electricity will be prioritized for the people and any shortages due to excessive demand by the centers will be bourn by the data centers and not the people.
Also under the new laws all data centers built in Ontario will only store Canadian data.

There is one being built right now about 6 miles from me. It used to be a coal generating station, which gave out hunting permits for their 1000+ acres that they owned. I heard that wont be allowed now with this new AL plant and they are acquiring big acreages adjoining them.

What does AI do besides create pictures video and song? Why do we need it?

They want to build one at the local decommissioned coal power station around me. All they keep repeating is that our electric bills will double within a certain radius of the plant. And no one is denying it.

Lots of things Danny. But I think one of the most crucial, besides defense, is healthcare. AI is still in it's very early stages and already is able to detect cancers and tumors that even trained specialists might miss. It also allows for instant analysis of scans in emergency settings where a few moments can mean the difference between life and death.

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/ai-in-healthcare

"And power is perhaps the biggest bottleneck of all. Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimates a 19-gigawatt shortfall in power for AI data centers by 2035 if growth continues at its current pace. "

Bloomberg has a big time “climate crisis” “green energy” bias,,,,

Mega donor to the dems

If the need for AI is so critical why can't we shut down the porn and stupid video generating and focus on what matters like defense, robotics and Healthcare?

I thought electricity was green energy?

Follow the money

Right, its almost like China whataboutism is justification for using eminent domain to steal land, drive power cost and use water to enrich corporate America and drive the stock market.

Who is "we" donner?