Indianapolis killed this Google data center. It would have used 1 million gallons of water per day.

Our Take

Credit to More Perfect Union for putting a number on what usually stays vague: a million gallons a day is the kind of figure that turns an abstract "tech investment" into a very concrete question about whose tap runs dry first. When a project gets killed before groundbreaking, it means someone did the math early and local residents or officials had enough leverage to say no. That almost never happens after the concrete is poured.

What we want to know, and what this story should push every other city council to ask before the next "exciting economic development announcement": who ran the water impact numbers, was the utility on the hook to expand capacity at ratepayer expense, and what tax abatements were dangled to make a million-gallon-a-day guest look like a good neighbor. Indianapolis saying no is notable precisely because so many towns say yes without ever seeing the full water and power modeling.

If you want to see how your own region stacks up against deals like this one, check our facility map for what's proposed, approved, or already drawing down local resources — and if a project is moving through your city right now, our take-action page has the tools to ask the right questions before it's a done deal.