Microsoft's AI Expansion in Brazil Revives Water-Intensive Cooling Amid Sustainability Scrutiny

Microsoft's AI Expansion in Brazil Revives Water-Intensive Cooling Amid Sustainability Scrutiny

March 30, 2026

The rapid global expansion of artificial intelligence infrastructure is intensifying scrutiny on the environmental footprint of data centers, particularly their massive consumption of energy and water. In Brazil, a new development highlights the trade-offs companies face between cutting-edge performance and sustainable design, as Microsoft incorporates older, water-reliant cooling technology for its AI data centers in the country.

According to planning documents, Microsoft's facilities could consume up to 3.24 million liters of water per day at peak demand, a volume comparable to the daily usage of a town of 15,000 people. The company informed local communities that it plans to activate its water-cooling towers only when temperatures exceed 29.4°C, estimating this would occur for approximately 10% of operating time.

However, a long-term climate study from the Center for Meteorological and Climate Research Applied to Agriculture (Cepagri) at Unicamp suggests this threshold is being crossed with increasing frequency. Their analysis indicates temperatures surpassed 29.4°C on 44.48% of days over the past three decades in the region, a trend expected to rise due to climate change. This raises questions about the real-world water usage of the facilities.

Local water utility Sabesp has stated it sees no risk to the regional water supply from the projects, which have obtained the necessary environmental licenses. Microsoft declined to comment on the specifics of its Brazilian operations. The company has stated that its more recent data center projects globally adopt water-free cooling technologies.

The move underscores a broader industry dilemma. While most data centers in Brazil utilize air-cooling systems with a lower water impact, the immense heat generated by concentrated AI computing workloads sometimes pushes operators to revert to more traditional, and often more water-intensive, cooling methods to ensure reliability. This case places Microsoft at the center of the ongoing debate about whether the breakneck pace of AI development can be reconciled with growing sustainability commitments and resource constraints in an era of climate change.

Source: folha