Emissions for power to run AI data centers will cause serious health problems

Computer processing demands for artificial intelligence are causing increasing levels of deadly air pollution from power plants and backup diesel generators, according to a study by researchers from the University of California Riverside and Caltech.

The air pollution generated by data centers is expected to result in as many as 1,300 premature deaths a year by 2030 in the U.S., the study says. Total public health costs from cancers, asthma, other diseases, and missed work and school days are approaching an estimated $20 billion a year.

“If you look at sustainability reports by tech companies, they only focus on carbon emissions, and some of them include water as well, but there’s absolutely no mention of unhealthful air pollutants and these pollutants are already creating a public health burden,” said Shaolei Ren, a UCR associate professor of electrical and computer engineering.

The study’s authors recommend that standards and methods be adopted that require tech companies to report air pollution caused by their power consumption and backup generators. The public health burden by 2030 is expected to be double that of the U.S. steel-making industry and rival that of all the cars, buses and trucks in California, the study projects.

“The growth of AI is driving an enormous increase in demand for data centers and energy, making it the fastest-growing sector for energy consumption across all industries,” Ren said.