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Conservation groups use AI while flagging data-center energy costs
A Reuters report carried by CNA said 15 environmental groups use AI for conservation work while voicing concern about electricity, water and emissions from the data centers that run it.
Based on reporting by CNA
Wire reporting: (Reuters, via CNA)
Environmental and conservation groups are putting artificial intelligence to work on climate data, wildfires and wildlife counts even as they warn that the data centers behind those tools drive electricity use, water demand and greenhouse-gas emissions, according to a Reuters report carried by CNA on Friday1.
Reuters said it spoke with 15 major environmental, conservation and development organizations; each used AI in some form and each raised concern about the facilities that power it1. Conservation International described using satellite hotspot detection and real-time alerts for community forest patrols in remote parts of Cambodia1.
The same account said the trade-off is likely to be discussed at the United Nations COP31 climate conference this month, with host Turkey asking governments and institutions to sign a pledge on sustainable AI development, and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calling on large AI companies to disclose environmental impacts1.
Reuters cited United Nations University researchers saying the global data-center footprint could more than double by 2030, and International Energy Agency figures putting annual data-center electricity use at about 945 terawatt-hours by 2030, with water use rising from about 560 billion liters in 2023 to about 1.2 trillion liters1. Microsoft, Amazon and Alphabet's Google have reported higher emissions tied in part to data-center growth, the report said; Amazon pointed to low-carbon energy purchases, while Microsoft and Google did not comment1.
Examples in the Reuters account included machine-learning wildlife surveys in Kenya, digitizing Jane Goodall Institute chimpanzee field notes with Amazon Web Services, World Resources Institute limits on image and video generation, on-vessel processing by The Nature Conservancy, Greenpeace guidelines plus opposition to large data-center buildout, and BirdLife International arguing that AI is now part of effective conservation1.
