ENVIRONMENT
Data centers could dispose of water in Ohio lakes if state EPA approves
Columbus Dispatch
Dec. 17, 2025Updated Dec. 18, 2025, 9:59 a.m. ET
As Ohio’s data center boom continues, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is considering a permit to allow new data centers without access to central sewerage systems to dispose of water used to cool servers directly into lakes, rivers and streams.
The Ohio EPA on Dec. 17 held a public hearing on the proposed permit at its downtown Columbus office with about 25 people in attendance and another 100 people watching online. Nearly a dozen people who attended in person spoke, and several specifically were concerned about language in the the draft permit proposal that states lowering water quality “is necessary to accommodate important social and economic development in the state of Ohio.”
Comments Due Date: Jan. 16, 2026 on the EPA comment portal. Visit the Permit Page to read more and make your voice heard.
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