The Dalles City Council OKs Google data centers deal amid secrecy, water worries

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — The city council in The Dalles has approved a deal with Google that will enable the technology giant to build two more water-guzzling data centers there, though some residents worry about drought and secrecy.

A single data center can churn through millions of gallons of water per day to keep hot-running equipment cool, and the placement of these facilities in drought-prone areas is an increasing concern around the globe, even as reliance on them is growing. Data centers form the “cloud” that helps people stream movies, conduct research at the touch of a button, buy things and store photos and videos.

Members of The Dalles City Council unanimously approved the $28.5 million deal Monday night. The new data centers would be in addition to the three cavernous facilities Google already has in the town. Google built its first-ever industrial-scale data center in The Dalles in 2006.

Google spokeswoman Kate Franko, in a statement issued after the vote, underscored the public’s need for data centers.

“Google’s data centers in The Dalles in Wasco County help millions of people find directions, send emails, and search for information every day,” said Franko, regional head of data center public affairs.

The new data centers would go on the site of a former aluminum smelter, shuttered in 1987, that emitted so much pollution it became a Superfund cleanup site. Along with Google’s purchase of the property several years ago, the company also acquired the locale’s rights to 3.9 million gallons of water per day.

“We are proud to expand our commitment to the region and continue the cleanup of the former Superfund site,” Franko said.

Under the deal, Google will transfer its water rights to the city and will build up The Dalles’ water capacity, including drilling wells, building water mains and developing an aquifer to store water and increase supply during drier periods.

How much water the new data centers would use, and how much the existing ones in The Dalles have been using, remains confidential, known only to some city officials and the city council — making some residents uneasy. The city says Google considers it a trade secret, and is fighting, via a lawsuit, a public records request for the information filed by The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Dave Anderson, public works director for The Dalles, said that while he cannot disclose how much water Google needs for the new data centers, he said it would be less than 3.9 million gallons per day.

“The city comes out ahead,” he said in an interview last month.

Some of the council members said they had been disparaged and insulted as they weighed whether to approve the deal. There was some opposition voiced in council meetings and on social media, but no concerted effort was launched in the city of 15,000 to obstruct the deal.

Read more at: https://apnews.com/article/technology-business-the-dalles-oregon-droughts-62b3774442293497ceb2306a606471af