Among the many problems posed by the rapid proliferation of data centers around the world is the strain on local water supplies. These facilities need plenty of water for cooling the vast arrays of servers and other computing equipment, which slow down when they run too hot.

Interestingly, Bloomberg’s Brooke Sutherland noted that a recent report published by water technology company Xylem Inc. and Global Water Intelligence showed that data centers don’t actually use way more water than other industries’ facilities. They also aren’t causing local residents’ water bills to rise the same way their electricity costs are going up, by way of higher demand and higher prices in their area.