Supervisors raise questions about data center water permits and reuse; DEQ guidance discussed

Supervisors discussed concerns about how projected data-center development could affect water resources, discharge requirements and downstream ecosystems, and asked staff to dig further into reuse and discharge plans before permitting actions proceed.

Supervisor Thomas said developments in Caroline County have shifted from sand-and-gravel and warehouses to data centers. Supervisor Underwood flagged two interrelated issues: drawing water from the Rappahannock River and where used cooling water would be discharged. Underwood warned that large volumes of reuse water, if discharged at high levels into the Mattaponi River, could harm downstream conditions and said Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) guidance suggests reuse practices and potential sale of treated water to data centers.

"DEQ says what they want you to do with that water is use it for revenue to sell to data centers," Underwood said, adding that county leaders need to ensure comparisons are “apples to apples” when evaluating cooling systems and discharge plans.

Supervisors noted the county’s previous discussions with state regulators and the need to consider the mix of cooling technologies (self-cooled systems vs. water-cooled systems) and where discharge permits would allow treated water to go. There was no vote or policy action; supervisors asked staff to continue educating the board and consulting DEQ and other technical resources as siting and permit applications progress.

Ending: Supervisors agreed to keep water-discharge and reuse impacts as part of project reviews for data-center proposals and to request further technical information from developers and regulators before authorizing county approvals.