Amazon, Microsoft face pressure over water usage

Amazon, Microsoft, and Google are facing growing shareholder pressure over the environmental impact of their rapidly expanding data centers, particularly their rising water and energy consumption in the United States.

Investors are demanding greater transparency ahead of upcoming annual meetings, calling for detailed disclosures on water usage, conservation efforts, and the environmental footprint of large-scale computing infrastructure, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.

The push comes as Big Tech continues to expand artificial intelligence and cloud computing capacity—growth that has driven massive increases in electricity and water demand for cooling systems.

Some companies have already faced community pushback and delays or cancellations of multibillion-dollar data center projects due to environmental concerns.

Asset managers, including Trillium Asset Management, have filed shareholder resolutions urging clearer reporting on how tech giants plan to meet climate goals while emissions and resource usage continue to rise.

In some cases, emissions linked to data center expansion have increased sharply despite long-term net-zero commitments.

Analysts say water consumption has become a major concern as data centers rely heavily on cooling systems. Industry estimates suggest North American facilities used nearly 1 trillion liters of water in 2025—roughly comparable to the annual usage of a major city.

While companies including Amazon, Microsoft, and Google have introduced more efficient cooling technologies, investors argue that reporting remains inconsistent and often lacks site-level detail.

Shareholders and environmental groups say detailed, location-specific disclosures are needed to assess risks to local water supplies and communities.

Industry groups, meanwhile, say improving transparency and community engagement has become a priority as data center expansion accelerates worldwide.

News.Az