The water consumption elephant in the room
The recent article “Expert: No need to panic over water” raised useful points, but it missed a major part of the Phoenix-metro water picture.
Scottsdale residents are being asked to think about Colorado River cuts, groundwater, alfalfa, desalination and advanced purified recycled water. All of those matter. But any serious discussion of future water demand in this Valley also has to include the massive new industrial loads now being added: semiconductor fabs and AI/data-center infrastructure.
I support Arizona’s semiconductor and AI future. I have lectured at ASU in a SEMI professional development context on semiconductor history, manufacturing, EUV lithography, AI-driven chip design and advanced packaging. I understand why these industries matter. But support for the industry does not excuse incomplete public accounting.
Semiconductor fabs require enormous quantities of ultra-pure process water. AI data centers may be air-cooled at the site, but the electricity still has to be generated somewhere, and power plants, turbines, backup systems or future nuclear systems still have to reject waste heat. The laws of thermodynamics do not disappear because the water meter is outside the data-center fence.
There is also an academic disclosure issue. ASU has a major public relationship with TSMC involving workforce development, faculty projects and research. That does not disqualify an ASU professor from speaking on water. But when an ASU water-law expert reassures the public about Arizona water without addressing semiconductor-water demand, that institutional context should be disclosed.
The question is not whether TSMC or data centers should exist here. The question is whether residents are getting the full ledger: water, power, cooling, wastewater, reclaimed-water allocation and who pays for the infrastructure.
Scottsdale may not be running out of cheap water tomorrow, but the Valley is running out of unexamined assumptions.
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