A government spokesperson said: "We recognise that data centres face sustainability challenges such as energy demands and water use - that's why AI Growth Zones are designed to attract investment in areas where existing energy and water infrastructure is already in place." In addition, recent changes made by the water regulator Ofwat would "unlock 104bn of spending by water companies" in the next five years. The data centre industry argues that modern sites are already more efficient. Alternative cooling methods which do not require much water, such as free air cooling and dry cooling, are evolving. Closed-loop cooling, which involves reusing water, will be deployed in Microsoft's new data centres in Phoenix and Wisconsin.

In emerging markets, many health and economic problems are related to access to clean water and sanitation infrastructure. This causes issues related to hygiene, pollution, agriculture, diseases, food and education. ISEF competitor Arya Tschand, 17, from Marlboro, New Jersey, has seen these problems first hand. " I developed the idea for my project on a trip to India visiting family," he says. "I saw the land was affected by water shortages and wastage, which affects people worldwide."