Everyone is aware of AI, but the cost in energy and water to run AI, powered by AI data centers, is not common knowledge unless you are paying attention to news. The sprawling, energy-hungry hyperscale data centers now transforming communities on the U.S. mainland are being protested, and in many cases, are too late to stop. Hawaii does not want to be in this irreversible situation.
What made this situation possible on mainland communities is a lack of awareness as lawmakers made deals with AI giant corporations without much public discourse or notification. Hawaii’s public must carefully consider the consequences of building large-scale AI data centers before projects are announced and permits move.
AI data centers require enormous, continuous supplies of electricity, water, land and supporting infrastructure. While AI has benefits, AI data centers could result in higher utility costs, new grid pressures and demands on scarce water. These pressures on energy and water have turned data centers into a political issue that crosses party lines. Supporters emphasize innovation, investment and jobs; critics ask who pays for water systems and emergency capacity. The argument is not whether artificial intelligence will be used. It is whether communities must subsidize its infrastructure or surrender control over where and how that infrastructure is built.
Hawaii’s vulnerability is its reason to plan
For Hawaii’s delicate ecosystem and limited energy, building large AI systems must be smart and energy efficient.
To date, there are already a few data centers in Hawaii, but no large-scale data centers, nowhere near the amount and size of data centers typical of cities with Hawaii’s similar land mass on the mainland.
State and county leaders should establish public rules now for rejecting an unacceptable proposal — or approving one only when its costs, benefits and risks are transparent and enforceable. Hawaii’s isolated island grids, high electricity costs, limited land and constrained freshwater supplies make the state vulnerable for improvisation and experimentation.
Lawmakers are already aware that a large new load of AI data centers could require expensive generation and grid upgrades. The State Legislature has already recognized the need for scrutiny and ordered studies on AI data centers, for example, on areas that could impact on utilities, ratepayers, natural resources and climate goals. That work should become the beginning of a durable regulatory framework and be taken very seriously.
Hawaii residents should be demanding the following
In the meantime, Hawaii residents should weigh in on this critical issue, demand for a full environmental assessment, advocate for renewable power and alternative cooling that will not use millions of gallons each year of fresh water to go to AI data centers. Hawaii residents should also do their own research and look at the data on energy and water requirements.
Before any large data center is approved, Hawaii should also require:
*Early public notice and meaningful community review
*Independent energy and grid modeling, with enforceable reliability standards and no shifting of upgrade costs to existing ratepayers.
*Binding water and energy budgets, public reporting of actual consumption and consequences for exceeding commitments.
*Developer-funded infrastructure and decommissioning, without open-ended public subsidies.
*Clear community benefits, including credible job numbers, workforce commitments and protections for nearby neighborhoods.
*And perhaps most importantly, the right to say no, when a project cannot meet Hawaii’s resource, affordability and environmental standards.
The worst outcome would be to wake up only after a hyperscale project is presented as inevitable as in many communities across the nation. For example, take the situation in El Paso (a city similar in size to Honolulu) where the current mayor and City Council are trying to undo – because of immense public pressure – what the former administration and Council did, making a deal stealthily with Meta to build a hyperscale data center. City attorneys say it would cost too much to back out of that deal. In their situation, it’s too late.
At the same time, Hawaii residents should not simply and reflexively close the door on every form of digital infrastructure. There are reasonable exceptions for digital infrastructure. No doubt, job creation and high-tech usage are compelling reasons for building digital infrastructure.
But lawmakers should set the terms now: no secrecy, no shifting burden and no project without informed public consent. Scale and self-sufficiency without long-term damage and cost are ideal.
Hawaii lawmakers must be transparent and listen to the concerns of Hawaii residents before approving the building of any major AI data centers in Hawaii.
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