I'm all for data centres.

But they should be made to report this. AND their use of water should be regulated - they don't need to use any water at all, it's just cheaper for them - and they should be contributing enough to mitigate negative effects on energy prices.

The problem isn't data centres. The problem is not pricing in and regulating externalities, whether caused by data centres or other things.

It would also quickly show us who actually cares about the environmental effects and who are using it as an excuse.