Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026
Good morning! We have an explainer today about how a data center that uses dry cooling can still use millions of gallons of water a day. We also have an update on how Cumberland Island National Seashore will now be handling more visitors. And we highlight the availability of energy efficiency rebates in Georgia.
Questions, tips or concerns? Send me a note at mary.landers@thecurrentga.org
EXPLAINER: ENVIRONMENT
Credit: Justin Taylor/The Current GA/CatchLight/Report for America
‘No free lunch’
Local officials as well as representatives of OpenAI have promised that the 3.2 gigawatt data center coming to Effingham County won’t drain the county’s water resources. It’ll use closed loop, dry cooling that cuts back on a data center’s thirst. But that’s not the whole picture.
“There’s no free lunch here, and there’s always going to be trade-offs,” said Kelly T. Sanders, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Southern California. Dry cooling means fans, which use electricity. And producing that electricity is water-intensive. Sanders ran the numbers and came up with an estimate of how much water the Open AI data center will consume off-site through power production, as The Current GA‘s Mary Landers reports.
NEWS: ENVIRONMENT
More visitors on Cumberland
Cumberland Island National Seashore last week finalized a new Visitor Use Management Plan that mostly mirrors a controversial draft plan released earlier this year. It more than doubles to 700 the number of daily visitors allowed on the island and provides more amenities for those visitors, including beach pavilions; kayak and canoe rentals; more campsites; and an on-island store.
Conservationists who treasure Cumberland for its peacefulness and natural beauty were not pleased.
The advocacy group Wild Cumberland posted on Facebook, noting its disappointment: “Most of the Seashore’s visitors are seeking solace from an increasingly fast-paced, technology-driven, commercialized society. Cumberland Island was designed to be different — to be preserved in its most primitive state and protect space for those seeking natural resource challenges and a more primitive, often solitary, experience.”
NEWS: ENVIRONMENT
Energy efficiency rebates
Did your August electric bill shock you? A Georgia energy efficiency program has distributed $50 million in federal funding through the Inflation Reduction Act to provide rebates for home upgrades such as improved insulation and HVAC systems, as Emily Jones of WABE/Grist reports.
And there’s more money in the pipeline. Check your eligibility and find contractors for the rebate program on GEFA’s website.
Also noted
Stephen C. Foster State Park has officially been renamed Okefenokee State Park, better reflecting its location and role as the western gateway to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. The change comes on the heels of the refuge becoming Georgia’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site and amid the largest infrastructure investment in the park’s history, including new cottages, an ADA-accessible kayak launch, and a forthcoming visitor center.
The Georgia Environmental Finance Authority awarded St. Marys a $3.4 million low-interest loan to rehabilitate its sewage system so it can accommodate anticipated flows from planned development within the service area.
Representatives from Fight Dirty Tybee, Manomet, Savannah Bee Company, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and the Tybee Island Marine Science Center present “Tybee Talks Sustainability” at 7 p.m. tonight, Sept. 2 at the Tybee Post Theater, 10 Van Horne Ave, Tybee Island. Admission is free.
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How much water will Effingham’s OpenAI data center need? A lot – but not on site.
Reducing the water use on site at the proposed OpenAI data center will drive up its power-related water consumption offsite, experts say.
Georgia doles out $50m in rebates for energy efficiency
A Georgia energy efficiency program has distributed $50 million in federal funding through the Inflation Reduction Act to provide rebates for home upgrades such as improved insulation and HVAC systems.
Court upholds veteran’s First Amendment rights, rejects Kings Bay Navy base Facebook ban
A federal judge ruled that Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay violated the First Amendment rights of U.S. Army veteran Sergio Rodriguez by banning him from the base’s Facebook page after he questioned the facility’s response to a significant power outage.
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