Arizona residents push back against data centers amid water scarcity

Every morning, 3½-year-old Jo reminds her mother Marisol Winfrey Herrera to turn off the tap while brushing teeth and washing hands. When they go out, Jo also tells her mom to bring ice water for homeless people in Tucson's heat. At preschool, Jo is taught water-saving habits to cope with the scorching temperatures.

That upbringing spurred Herrera to join 'No Desert Data Center', a residents' group opposing two large data centers planned on either side of Tucson. The Project Blue complex — a $3.6 billion facility southeast of the city and a $5 billion complex northwest in the town of Marana — would, the group says, consume more water and electricity than the Sonoran Desert can provide.

“We are in the middle of a 30-year drought that has now become extreme,” said Lisa Shipek, co-executive director of the Watershed Management Group, a Tucson nonprofit. The Colorado River's flow — Tucson's main water supply via the Central Arizona Project canal system — has fallen 20% compared with the 20th century due to climate change. Arizona could face water cuts of up to 77%.

At city council meetings, Beale Infrastructure — the developer of Project Blue — pitched the project as an economic engine, creating several thousand construction jobs and several hundred permanent positions, plus about $250 million in tax revenue over the first decade. That put council members in a tough spot, weighing economic benefits against ever-scarcer water and electricity.

Activists also worry that Tucson Electric Power (TEP) will raise rates to expand capacity for the data centers. After a 10% rate increase in 2023, TEP proposed an additional 14% hike in June 2025. Lee Ziesche, an activist, warned the project could “lead to higher temperatures and higher electricity prices” due to the heat-island effect from air conditioning.

In August 2025, Tucson council members voted unanimously not to purchase land for the project and not to supply water or electricity. In December 2025, the project was approved for construction in an unincorporated area of Pima County, outside city limits. Beale decided to use air conditioning instead of water and a closed-loop water system for recycling. Opponents argue this will increase electricity consumption and, consequently, emissions.

Even as Project Blue was clearing approval, Beale announced another project in Marana — 600 acres, twice the size. Jackie McGuire, a former Wall Street banker and mother of three, helped launch a campaign to stop the rezoning of agricultural land. A study published in May 2025 found that data centers could raise Phoenix-area temperatures by up to 1.22°C downwind. “That heat is equivalent to one to two million home heaters,” McGuire said. “The heat island effect could make Marana uninhabitable.” The Marana city council nonetheless approved the rezoning.

In neighboring Pinal County, La Osa — the state's biggest data center project — is planned on 3,300 acres with 59 data centers, two natural-gas plants and battery storage. Residents worry about round-the-clock noise and higher electricity rates. In response to opposition, a project lawyer said the scale has been reduced to 11 data centers.

Sharing limited water has long been a sore point in Arizona. The state sued California at the U.S. Supreme Court for three decades over Colorado River allocations. The outcome gave California the larger share. “Arizona has always been in a tough spot,” said Jason Robison, co-director of the Gina Guy Center for Land and Water Law.

Arizona has restricted grass irrigation in Tucson and run widespread water-conservation campaigns. Yet, according to Sharon Medgal, director of the University of Arizona Water Resources Research Center, data centers “do not follow the same groundwater replenishment rules” as other industries, thereby “depleting the aquifer further.”

Governor Katie Hobbs, up for re-election in November 2026, has asked the federal government for more water, arguing the state hosts essential industries such as semiconductors, aerospace and data centers. In late April 2026, construction on Project Blue began. Activists gathered early in the morning to protest. Beale subsequently started drilling wells on the site after obtaining permits, expecting to use 31,000 gallons of water annually for bathrooms and kitchens.

“This may not yet be a happy ending, but it is an ongoing story,” said Vivek Bharathan, a spokesman for No Desert Data Center.