This was announced last week, and I forgot to post it, but this is a hell of a move by Google to address and try to get ahead of the increasing water security fears associated with data center developments. While $500 million isn't exactly a ton, it is a huge step in the right direction, and funding projects at the local level instead of going through the state or federal government will drop the price considerably.

Google has already partnered with localities and non-profits for 165 water stewardship projects across almost 100 different watersheds. Seven new projects were announced for a total of $17 million across 7 states, so they are already getting the ball rolling with this $500 million fund.

One of the big areas that will be interesting to watch and see if they either deploy or possibly develop technology in is using graywater or recycled wastewater. This would reduce water demand, and if Google moves to build the infrastructure to process this water, it would actually help benefit local governments and municipalities. SpaceX via xAI had talked about doing this at one of their Memphis data centers before they halted the project due to costs.