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Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

oregonlive.com

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Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#71

Post by WeylandYutani »

sofixa wrote: post #52
kQq9oHeAz6wLLS wrote: post #32

I'm actually more interested in the linked article about the city suing the newspaper to withhold the usage data from the public record, apparently at the behest of Google. I understand Google is a major employer in the area, but the city acting like Google's minion seems wrong.

> I understand Google is a major employer in the area, but the city acting like Google's minion seems wrong. Major is a stretch, 200 employees in a 16,000 town.

Data center has a few security guards. Everything is automated and run remotely. They fly people in from the UD if something needs to be done on site.

These places are basically windowless concrete boxes with a few underground basement levels. At least that's how it is done in my country where we worship ultra efficiency and employees are a liability you want to avoid as much as possible.

Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#72

Post by brianwawok »

nightfly wrote: post #41

It would be nice if it could be cooled using water from the Columbia river instead of from the aquifer... I only live like 3miles from the data center but am on a different water source. Still, with increasing drought conditions it might contribute to increased costs and availability in the future. I already pay $75/m for water...

Thats literally in the article. Why they don't use river.

Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#73

Post by CodeSgt »

ngoilapites wrote: post #69
CodeSgt wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I didn't say that, but if you think the wealth Google provides those 200 doesn't benefit the remaining 16k then you're delusional.

The benefit is about prestige, not only about 200 families.

The primary benefit is 200 Google salaries stimulating the relatively small local economy.

Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#74

Post by PM_me_your_math »

ksec wrote: post #65
alexvoda wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Dumb question, but can't they condense the water and collect it somewhere?

Same question. Why cant it be a closed loop system?

The hydrological cycle is already a closed loop system. The water you drink today watered a plant 10,000 years ago, passed through Abraham Lincoln's kidneys, or was drank by Genghis Khan.

Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#75

Post by PM_me_your_math »

Calavar wrote: post #10
tw98521358 wrote: post #8

I mean so what they just pump it through and send it back to the river probably cleaner then it originally was. What’s the problem? The water is not being wasted

The header image for the article is a picture of steam rising up from their datacenter. Nearly all water that we use is eventually recycled. Steam will eventually come back down as rain, and rainwater works its way through the ground and into streams and rivers - the magic of the water cycle. Water is a renewable resource from that perspective. The issue is the rate at which we use it, because the water cycle is not…

>This is why water reservoir levels are dropping all along the Colorado river.

This is very much a human made problem, but nobody is talking about it.

The flow rate through the dam has been increased to generate more power due to the lack of new baseline power generation capabilities. The demand comes from the shutdown of coal and gas fired powerplants across the west coast. The dam has to flow more water to generate more power and the water cannot be replaced fast enough.

Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#76

Post by ngoilapites »

CodeSgt wrote: post #73
ngoilapites wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The benefit is about prestige, not only about 200 families.

The primary benefit is 200 Google salaries stimulating the relatively small local economy.

The primary benefit for whom? And the secondary?

Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#77

Post by kQq9oHeAz6wLLS »

sofixa wrote: post #52
kQq9oHeAz6wLLS wrote: post #32

I'm actually more interested in the linked article about the city suing the newspaper to withhold the usage data from the public record, apparently at the behest of Google. I understand Google is a major employer in the area, but the city acting like Google's minion seems wrong.

> I understand Google is a major employer in the area, but the city acting like Google's minion seems wrong. Major is a stretch, 200 employees in a 16,000 town.

That's even worse, then.

Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#79

Post by throwaway09223 »

tadfisher wrote: post #56
throwaway09223 wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But not because of hydroelectric. 0% of the water is "consumed" by hydropower, even if a huge percentage of the water passes through its turbines. The water is siphoned off elsewhere for irrigation.

The primary purpose of some dams is for water control, whether to control flooding, provide for irrigation and consumption, or both. You cannot divorce the power station from the reservoir in judging a particular hydro dam's environmental impact, because generating power is only one purpose of the dam. The Hoover with Lake Mead is certainly, objectively, and effectively of this dual purpose.

Yes, but none of that consumes water.

In fact, the opposite is true: The dam makes more water available for consumption throughout the year.

Re: Google’s water use is soaring, consume more than 25% of water used in The Dalles

#80

Post by throwaway09223 »

shagie wrote: post #51
throwaway09223 wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, it looks like some (most?) water is evaporated -- but a significant portion is also returned to the river. I saw elsewhere that google "consumes" around 4x as much water for hydroelectric power generation as they use for cooling. Hydroelectric will return essentially all the water back to the source.

The water from the river is regulated at a federal level - https://www.oregonlive.com/silicon-forest/2021/11/why-does-g... > Google’s data centers are right by the Columbia River. Why can’t the company just get its water out of the river? > Federal law strictly governs water use from rivers. Anderson says withdrawals from the Columbia generally aren’t permitted. > There are exceptions in cases where waters users can…

Ah, that makes sense, thank you. I assumed Google was using river water.
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