The Heartland Institute’s Chris Talgo says most Americans are wrong about how much water and power AI data centers use — and what their communities stand to gain
SCHAUMBURG, IL (September 21, 2026) — A new Gallup poll finds seven in 10 Americans oppose building AI data centers in their area, with nearly half “strongly opposed.” In a new commentary for Townhall, Heartland Institute Editorial Director Chris Talgo argues that opposition is driven almost entirely by myths about water use and grid strain. Those myths fall apart under a few minutes of scrutiny.
Talgo is available for interviews to walk through why the fears are overblown, what’s driving electricity prices, and how data centers have delivered real financial windfalls to the communities that host them.
WHY THIS IS A BIG STORY FOR YOUR AUDIENCE:
• The water-drain fear is largely a myth. Talgo cites a Florida Water and Pollution Control Operators Association report showing up to a quarter of data centers are fully “water-free,” relying on air cooling instead. Newer “closed-loop” systems cut freshwater use by up to 70% compared to older evaporative methods, and “liquid cooling” systems return 90–95% of water for treatment — versus 70–80% lost to evaporation in outdated systems.
• Data centers aren’t the real reason electricity costs are rising. Talgo argues supply can and should expand to meet new demand, and that many facilities already provide their own “behind-the-meter” power. He puts the blame for higher electricity costs on green-energy mandates in blue states, not on data centers, which he says are simply energy customers like any ratepayer.
• Host communities are seeing real money. In Richland Parish, Louisiana, sales-tax receipts from Meta’s Hyperion data center funded teacher bonuses of up to $50,935. In Loudoun County, Virginia, data centers generate nearly half of all local tax revenue — saving homeowners an average of $5,800 a year in property taxes.
• It’s a local-angle story almost anywhere. With data center projects proposed or under construction in states across the country, hosts can localize this immediately — tax revenue, jobs, school funding, and utility rates are on the table in nearly every market.
• It connects to a debt and energy-policy story your audience already cares about. Talgo frames cash-strapped municipalities — amid $2.3 trillion in local government debt — as having every reason to welcome, not fear, data center investment, and argues that affordable, reliable power sources like natural gas, coal, and nuclear, not renewables, are what will keep the grid capable of supporting them.
Read Talgo’s full commentary, “Data Center Derangement Syndrome,” at Townhall.
To book Talgo on your program, reply to this email or contact VP & Director of Communications Jim Lakely at [email protected] or call/text 312-731-9364.
The Heartland Institute is a national nonprofit organization founded in 1984 and headquartered in Schaumburg, Illinois. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our website or call 312/377-4000.
Chris Talgo is the Editorial Director for The Heartland Institute and a fellow for Heartland’s Glenn C. Haskins Emerging Issues Center.
