While much of the debate around artificial intelligence (AI) has centered on ethics in education and academic integrity, a crucial but often overlooked issue is its environmental impact. As AI use surges globally, its demand for energy, water, and land is raising sustainability concerns that could have long-term consequences.
The Hidden Environmental Costs of AI AI may seem intangible, but every interaction with AI tools like ChatGPT requires vast computational resources. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently acknowledged that AI will consume "vastly more" power than expected, reinforcing concerns raised by researchers like Professor Kate Crawford. Studies estimate that AI-driven searches use four to five times more energy than conventional web searches, with large-scale AI systems potentially consuming as much power as entire nations in the future.
Water and Energy Demands of AI AI data centers require immense amounts of water for three primary functions:
Cooling: Preventing overheating in server farms.
Electricity Generation: Supporting power-intensive computing processes.
Manufacturing: Producing the hardware essential for AI development.
A study by Li et al. from the University of California and The Washington Post found that training AI models consumes staggering amounts of water. For example, Microsoft’s U.S. data centers used approximately 700,000 liters of freshwater to train GPT-3. As AI advances, the newer GPT-4 model is expected to demand even greater resources. Researchers estimate that composing a single 100-word email using GPT-4 consumes about 519ml of water—the equivalent of a standard bottled drink.
By 2027, AI-driven demand could account for 4.2 to 6.6 billion cubic meters of water withdrawals, exceeding Denmark’s annual consumption and amounting to half that of the United Kingdom. The strain on global freshwater resources could lead to sustainability challenges and social conflicts, particularly in regions already grappling with water shortages.
Australia’s Perspective on AI and Sustainability Australia is no stranger to water conservation, with decades of initiatives promoting responsible water use. As AI’s environmental impact becomes more evident, questions arise about whether public perception of AI, including tools like ChatGPT, will shift. Will the convenience of AI outweigh concerns about sustainability, or will new policies emerge to regulate its environmental footprint?
With AI’s resource consumption now under scrutiny, addressing these issues will be crucial in balancing technological advancement with environmental responsibility.
