Investigators in Georgia found that the cause of unusually low water pressure in homes across Fayette County was a data center secretly drawing 29 million gallons through two water connections the county didn’t know existed. The outrage is real, but the county isn’t even planning to fine the developer.

Concerns began mounting last year when residents of an affluent neighborhood in Fayetteville noticed that their water pressure was unusually low.

County utility officials at first told residents to stop watering their lawns to conserve water. But after a proper investigation, it turned out the problem had nothing to do with the community’s alleged wastefulness.

Officials discovered two industrial-scale water hookups feeding a nearby data center campus, developed by Quality Technology Services.

One connection had been installed without the utility’s knowledge, and the other wasn’t linked to the company’s account and therefore wasn’t being billed.

All told, the data center used more than 29 million gallons of unaccounted-for water, the equivalent of 44 Olympic-size swimming pools, far exceeding the peak limit agreed to during the planning process, according to Politico.

Quality Technology Services, the Blackstone-owned developer, owed $147,474 in retroactive charges for the unmetered consumption. In all fairness, the data center paid up as soon as it was notified.

Besides, it looks like a procedural mix-up. Vanessa Tigert, the Fayette County water system director, told Politico that the county doesn’t have many commercial meters in the system and didn’t realize their connection point wasn’t working.

Still, despite the unauthorized connections, Fayette County opted not to fine the company. County officials say the campus will generate tens of millions of dollars in annual property taxes.

“They're our largest customer, and we have to be partners,” Tigert said.

“It’s called customer service.”

Locals have woken up, though. Last month, the Fayetteville City Council voted to ban new data centers in every zoning district within the city.

Nationally, the data center facilities’ thirst for water is also becoming a political battle, especially in states that regularly experience moderate to severe drought.

Maine is not such a state, but its lawmakers have recently passed a bill that could make it the first US state to put a moratorium on new data centers. Around a dozen other US states are also weighing legislation that would halt or limit data center development.

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