Following last Monday night’s well-attended town hall in Montgomery City, Amazon Web Services has formally responded to questions from the Montgomery County Commission regarding water use at the proposed Project Green data center campus. The company’s detailed letter, sent to Presiding Commissioner Ryan Poston, provides the clearest explanation to date of how AWS intends to manage water demand while operating in the county.
Commissioner Poston hosted the forum, which gave residents an opportunity to question local experts on water, power, and economic development. The Missouri Times covered the event earlier this week in an editorial by Scott Faughn, who noted the seriousness and professionalism with which the community approached the issue.
In its written response, AWS states that each data center building is expected to use about 2.9 million gallons of water annually. The company compares that level of consumption to a typical restaurant. At full buildout of all 17 proposed buildings, total annual water use would be about 50 million gallons. AWS compares this to the average yearly water use of a golf course. According to the company, this represents only 0.03 percent of the aquifer’s average annual safe yield.
The letter cites two independent engineering analyses from CDM Smith and Geosyntec Consultants. Those reports describe an aquifer containing more than 23 trillion gallons of stored water, with only about 8 percent of its annual safe yield currently being used by all consumers in the region. Both firms concluded that the data center’s groundwater use would not affect drinking water systems or lower aquifer levels.
AWS also emphasized the cooling strategy planned for the campus. According to the company, outside air will be used for cooling about 93 percent of the year, with water used only during the hottest conditions. AWS says this approach makes its facilities about 60 percent more water efficient than the industry average and also reduces electrical demand by 25 to 35 percent during peak summer periods.
The letter notes that the Missouri Department of Natural Resources projects groundwater recharge in the region to remain nearly five times higher than total water withdrawals by all users through 2060. AWS says this long-range trend demonstrates that withdrawals associated with the data center would remain within sustainable limits.
AWS committed to supporting and funding all required water and wastewater facilities and stated that all systems will meet Missouri Department of Natural Resources water quality standards.
The company concluded by reiterating the project’s expected economic contributions, including thousands of construction jobs, hundreds of permanent positions, and tens of millions of dollars in tax revenues for Montgomery County.
The full letter is now part of the public record and will likely play a significant role as county officials and residents continue to evaluate Project Green and its impact on local water resources and infrastructure.
Jake Kroesen is a Jackson County native and a graduate of the University of Central Missouri. He holds a B.S. in Political Science.
