City OKs Google data centers amid secrecy, water worries

By ANDREW SELSKY
Associated Press

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — The council of a small Oregon city has approved a deal with Google that will enable the technology giant to build more water-guzzling data centers there, though some residents worry about drought and the secrecy. A single data center can churn through millions of gallons of water per day to keep hot-running equipment cool. Members of the Dalles City Council unanimously approved the $28.5 million deal Monday night. How much water the new data centers would use, and how much the existing ones in The Dalles have been using, remains confidential.