What’s in the water? What we know and don’t know about data center water discharge in Virginia
by Shannon Heckt, Virginia MercuryJune 1, 2026 Data centers require a massive amount of water to cool their systems, which heat up as they process digital information through numerous computers and network servers. Systems that aren’t “closed loop” have to cycle out water that doesn’t evaporate. Most data centers in Virginia are permitted to discharge…
