Latino Voters Raise Alarms Over AI Data Centers’ Water, Energy, and Pollution Impacts

A new national poll finds Latino voters increasingly concerned about the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers — especially when those facilities are built near their communities. The survey, conducted by Blue Rose Research for Climate Power En Acción, shows strong opposition to data‑center development tied to rising utility costs, water shortages, and pollution.

According to the poll, 58% of Latino voters oppose building AI data centers near residential areas when the question is framed around higher electricity bills, compared to just 18% who support it. Concerns remain high even when the focus shifts to water usage: 56% oppose construction if it risks reducing local water supplies.

Antonieta Cádiz, Executive Director of Climate Power En Acción, said the findings reflect what Latino communities have been expressing for years. “Our families live in the most polluted and vulnerable areas. With the expansion of data centers, there is strong concern in the community about the impact on electricity costs, water consumption, and air pollution,” Cádiz said. “This survey confirms what we hear time and time again: our communities want clean, affordable energy that reduces pollution, not empty promises from companies and politicians they don’t trust. Tech companies can’t be given a blank check; they must consider the impact they have on the communities where they build their data centers and act accordingly.”

The poll also shows overwhelming support for clean‑energy requirements: 59% of Latino voters say data centers should be required to run on clean energy, even if that slows construction. Only 19% believe they should be allowed to use any available energy source.

These concerns are emerging as data‑center development accelerates nationwide. Roughly one‑third of all U.S. data centers built or planned are located in communities where people of color make up at least 40% of residents, according to Climate Power’s memo.

Environmental‑justice advocates say this pattern mirrors long‑standing inequities. The Center for Biological Diversity, along with nearly 120 community and climate organizations, recently urged Congress to reject efforts to fast‑track AI data centers through permitting reform. Their letter warns that data‑center expansion is “deepening environmental injustice by concentrating facilities in low‑income communities and communities of color already overburdened by pollution and limited resources.”

LaTricea D. Adams, CEO of Young, Gifted & Green, said the stakes are clear: “Our democratic process was sidelined when our most powerful leaders championed a data center while community voices were shut out. What happens in Memphis can happen in cities and states across the country.”

Across the U.S., local governments are beginning to push back. In June, voters in Monterey Park, California, approved a citywide ban on new data centers with 86.4% support, making it the first city in the country to enact such a prohibition. Residents cited concerns about electricity demand, industrial infrastructure, and environmental impacts associated with AI‑driven data‑center growth. Mayor Elizabeth Yang said the landslide vote reflected “sustained resident organizing and civic engagement” and a commitment to “listening to residents.”

Globally, researchers warn that the boom in AI infrastructure is reshaping communities in ways that echo extractive industries. Ethnographer Steven Gonzalez Monserrate describes the trend as “terraforming,” arguing that tech giants are “taking land” and “natural resources” while influencing political decisions and creating “new colonialism” through digital infrastructure.

For Latino voters, the Climate Power poll suggests the issue is not abstract. It is about the tangible costs of electricity, the availability of water, and the health impacts of pollution — all in communities that already face disproportionate environmental burdens. As AI companies race to build more data centers, Latino voters are signaling they want safeguards, transparency, and clean‑energy commitments before these facilities reshape their neighborhoods.

Latino Voters Raise Alarms Over AI Data Centers’ Water, Energy, and Pollution Impacts was first published by the Latino News Network and republished with permission.

Hugo Balta is the executive editor of The Fulcrum and the publisher of the Latino News Network, and twice president of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.