• Shareholder pressure intensifies on Big Tech to disclose water and energy usage as AI-driven data center demand accelerates.
  • North American data centers consumed nearly 1 trillion liters of water in 2025, raising material operational and community risk concerns.
  • Investors warn that gaps in disclosure could expose companies to climate, governance, and long-term financial risks.

Major institutional investors are escalating pressure on Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet’s Google, demanding clearer disclosure on water consumption and energy use tied to rapidly expanding US data center infrastructure.

The push comes ahead of annual shareholder meetings, where environmental performance and governance practices are expected to face heightened scrutiny. The backdrop is growing community resistance, with several multibillion-dollar data center projects recently halted following local opposition over resource strain.

For investors, the issue is no longer confined to sustainability narratives. It is now a question of operational risk, capital allocation and long-term viability in an AI-driven economy that depends heavily on computing power.

Climate Targets Under Pressure

At the center of the debate is whether current climate commitments remain credible given the scale of infrastructure required to support artificial intelligence growth.

Trillium Asset Management has filed a shareholder resolution with Alphabet seeking clarity on how the company plans to meet its existing climate targets.

Alphabet pledged in 2020 to halve emissions and run on carbon-free energy by 2030. However, emissions have since risen 51%, prompting concern among investors.

Andrea Ranger, director of shareholder advocacy at Trillium, said investors are effectively operating without sufficient visibility: “in the dark” about how the company intends to meet its commitments.

The resolution follows a similar proposal last year that secured support from nearly a quarter of independent shareholders, indicating growing alignment among investors on climate accountability.

Parallel pressure is building elsewhere. Green Century Capital Management confirmed it is in discussions with Nvidia on a potential resolution focused on AI-related environmental risks.

Giovanna Eichner, a shareholder advocate at the firm, framed the concern clearly: “to ensure that short-term AI gains do not come at the cost of long-term climate and financial risk.”

Giovanna Eichner

Water Usage Emerges as a Critical Risk Metric

Beyond carbon, water is rapidly becoming a focal point for investors assessing data center sustainability.

According to Mordor Intelligence, North American data centers used nearly 1 trillion liters of water in 2025, roughly equivalent to the annual consumption of New York City. The scale places increasing pressure on local water systems, particularly in drought-prone regions where new facilities are often located.

While major operators including Meta, Google, Amazon and Microsoft have introduced closed-loop cooling systems to reduce water intensity, disclosure remains inconsistent.

Meta reported water usage only for owned sites, excluding leased and under-construction facilities. Its consumption rose 51% between 2020 and 2024, reaching 5,637 megaliters, enough to supply more than 13,000 homes annually.

Google’s reporting includes owned and leased sites but omits third-party operations. Microsoft provides aggregate water usage figures without site-level breakdowns. Amazon reports water use relative to power consumption rather than total volumes.

This patchwork approach has left investors unable to fully assess exposure to local resource constraints and operational risks.

RELATED ARTICLE: Why water is the next net-zero environmental target

Demand for Site-Level Transparency

Investors are now calling for granular, site-level data to evaluate both environmental impact and resilience.

Such data would allow stakeholders to understand how facilities interact with local ecosystems, assess regulatory risks, and evaluate the effectiveness of mitigation strategies such as water replenishment.

Josh Weissman, director of infra capacity delivery at Amazon, acknowledged the shift toward greater transparency, stating the company is “increasingly disclosing site-specific water consumption data where we operate.”

An Amazon spokesperson added that the company is committed to being a “good neighbor,” pointing to investments in efficiency, new energy capacity, and efforts to reduce water use.

For investors, however, commitments without standardized disclosure frameworks fall short of governance expectations.

What This Means for Executives and Investors

The convergence of AI expansion, resource constraints, and investor activism is redefining how data center growth is evaluated.

For C-suite leaders, the message is clear. Climate commitments must be reconciled with operational realities, and disclosure practices must evolve to meet rising expectations from capital markets.

For investors, water and energy metrics are emerging as critical indicators of long-term value and risk, particularly as regulatory scrutiny intensifies and community opposition becomes more organized.

The broader implication extends beyond individual companies. As data infrastructure becomes foundational to the global economy, its environmental footprint is moving to the center of ESG analysis.

Without credible pathways to manage resource intensity, the sector risks facing not only reputational challenges but also material constraints on future growth.

The post Investors Press Amazon, Microsoft and Google on Water and Energy Use in Expanding US Data Centers appeared first on ESG News.