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Sunbury experts warn data-center cooling could strain local water supplies, urge reuse and monitoring
Summary
Outside water specialists told the Sunbury City Council the town’s water budget is finite and that data-center cooling can concentrate salts and PFAS; they recommended baseline monitoring, industrial pre-treatment, reuse feasibility studies and contractual protections so costs don’t fall on existing ratepayers.
Brian Coglin, chief operating officer of Delco Water and president of the Ohio chapter of the Water Reuse Association, told the Sunbury City Council on June 25 that central Ohio has a "finite water budget" and that prospective data-center cooling demands must fit within that limit.
Coglin said Delco can produce roughly 40 million gallons a day from its three plants and serves more than 58,000 connections across an extensive distribution network, but that the system is already shaped by seasonal peaks. "The amount of water we have here is finite," he said, arguing that decisions about large industrial users are not about whether industry will come, but about how much of the water can be returned for reuse.
The expert explained why cooling towers concentrate total dissolved solids (TDS) and other constituents: as water cycles and evaporates for thermal transfer, minerals are left behind and blowdown can be higher in salts and persistent contaminants. He cautioned Sunbury officials that repeated recycling for industrial cooling could concentrate these constituents further and recommended early baseline monitoring and an industrial pre-treatment program to track constituents before they enter municipal wastewater.
Coglin pointed to reuse as one option to reduce pressure on potable supplies—peeling off treated effluent for non-potable industrial uses rather than discharging it directly to streams. He cited Delco’s participation in feasibility work with the Delaware County Regional Sewer District and noted that US EPA’s Water Reuse Action Plan 2.0 is encouraging reclaimed water for industrial use.
On water quality, Coglin stressed operational controls Delco uses to protect drinking-water customers, such as maintaining free-chlorine residuals and limiting "water age" in the distribution system. He warned that adding large, intermittent cooling loads can strain hydraulics and water age in parts of the network and said Delco prefers up-front payments and large-user agreements so the utility and its existing customers do not shoulder the capital risk of new connections.
Council members and residents asked detailed questions about pre-treatment, where other Ohio examples exist, PFAS ("forever chemicals"), drought prioritization and the risk of passing costs to households. Coglin said domestic and human-health supply is Delco’s top priority during shortages, explained that contracts typically contain guaranteed-delivery language with penalties, and recommended phased studies—stream gauging, aquifer characterization and well monitoring—before approving major hookups.
The presentation and subsequent Q&A left the council with a clear set of near-term options to pursue: require baseline monitoring and pretreatment for any cooling-water candidate, complete a reuse feasibility analysis with regional partners, consult Ohio EPA early in the planning process, and negotiate large-user agreements that allocate construction and long-term costs to the developer rather than to existing ratepayers.
The council did not take any regulatory action at the meeting; presenters said these steps – and potential ordinance or contract language – will require follow-up work and legal review.
