A $10B, 800MW AI data center is now planned to be built in South Australia. This notion has been backed by the State Government with no scrutiny, and no public attention.  Access to fresh water is crucial for survival. Having a working AI data center in Australia will greatly limit our access to fresh water. 

AI data centers use an extreme amount of water. A singular data center guzzle 5 million gallons of water everyday. This is the same amount of water used by a town populated with 50,000 people, each day.  Annually, that's 163.7 billion gallons used up by the center to keep it cool. That is the only purpose for using so much water. 

AI data center's use extreme amounts of water per day, we cannot replace the amount it uses quickly.

South Australia is prone to droughts, there are towns that have limited access to water, and some days, there will be nothing. AI data centers will make this more widespread, we cannot afford to have an AI data centers in South Australia. 

If the State Government builds this data centers, farmers will go without water, families will go without, and we all suffer, just so we have access to a fancy AI data centers. 

South Australia is  full of dry land. We experienced a severe drought last year in the middle of winter.

Communities that live around data centers have limited access to water in their homes because the center uses so much. It will also contain sediment and unsafe to drink if they manage to get water out. We cannot allow that to happen in South Australia. 

Say no to an AI data center in South Australia

There is no benefit of building an AI data center in South Australia

AI has done nothing but harm our community. Heard of the phrase, "use it or lose it?"

Children and university students have moved to AI use because it makes writing easy. Using generative AI removes the need to think for yourself. There is an influx of case studies proving and demonstrating cognitive decline in those who consistently use AI to think for them.

Scientific, peer reviewed studies show a significant decline in attention, planning, problem solving, memory and language. This decline have been observed in people across the lifespan, young and old. 

AI data centers give nothing to our community. We have no use for it here.

Bibliography (in order of viewing):

1. Yanez-Barneuvo, M. (2025). Data Centers and Water Consumption, Environmental and Energy Institute: https://www.eesi.org/articles/view/data-centers-and-water-consumption 
2.  Shahzad, M.W. (2025, June 17). AI is gobbling up water it cannot replace - I am working on a solution. https://theconversation.com/ai-is-gobbling-up-water-it-cannot-replace-im-working-on-a-solution-258518 
3. Australian Bureau of Meterology (2026,  May 7). Drought, Rainfall deficiencies and water availability:  https://www.bom.gov.au/climate/drought/
4.  Fleury, M., & Jimenez, N. (2025, July 11). 'I can't drink the water' - life next to a US data centre: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy8gy7lv448o
5.  Sanderman, G. (2025, December 20). Are these AI prompts damaging your thinking skills?  https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd6xz12j6pzo 
6. Khan, S. M. F. A., & Suhluli, S. (2025). Generative AI and Cognitive Challenges in Research: Balancing Cognitive Load, Fatigue, and Human Resilience. Technologies, 13(11), 486.
7. Domínguez, U. (2024). Potential cognitive risks of generative transformer-based AI chatbots on higher order executive functions. Neuropsychology, 38(4), 293.
8. Mahajan, P. (2025). The Silent Erosion: Global Generational Cognitive Decline in the Age of AI and the Future of Human Intellectual Agency.

Photograph reference (royalty free image): https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/dried-river-cracked-ground-2641300049?trackingId=4121a169-1045-4353-9005-09b6463a08b2&listId=searchResults