Opinion: AI’s environmental toll grows as use spreads among youth and schools

As more young people use AI tools like ChatGPT for everyday tasks and education, researchers warn that the technology’s carbon and water footprint is accelerating environmental harm, often in already burdened communities.

Lex McMenamin reports for Teen Vogue.

In short:

Training and running large language models such as ChatGPT consumes enormous energy and water, straining public resources and increasing carbon emissions. A 100-word ChatGPT email, for example, can use as much as a bottle of drinking water and enough electricity to power 14 LED bulbs for an hour.
Data centers powering AI often draw energy from coal plants and are frequently located in low-income, marginalized areas already facing high pollution and health burdens. Some utilities have extended coal plant operations to support AI demand, despite prior plans to shut them down.
Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI acknowledge the environmental strain from AI infrastructure and have set sustainability targets, but reports show these goals are not being met. Meanwhile, tech companies are expanding nuclear energy projects to meet surging AI energy needs.

Key quote:

“There are tangible and measurable harms attached to data center expansion and the use of resources for powerful AI.”

— Tamara Kneese, director of Data & Society’s Climate, Technology, and Justice program

Why this matters:

As artificial intelligence becomes deeply embedded in daily life, from classrooms to chatbots, its hidden environmental toll is becoming harder to ignore. Running advanced AI systems requires vast computing power, which in turn demands huge amounts of electricity and water. Data centers, often reliant on fossil fuels, exacerbate local air pollution and public health challenges while diverting water from regions with limited supply. Even companies promoting AI as a solution to climate change admit they are failing to meet their own sustainability goals. And with AI tools becoming standard in education and tech companies pushing to normalize their presence, the pressure to keep these centers running is only increasing.

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California mining company turns to solar heat but can’t quit coal just yet

In California’s Mojave Desert, a mining plant is turning to solar thermal energy to replace one of its coal-fired generators, but a second unit may run for years due to the intense heat and 24-hour power it needs.

Ivan Penn reports for The New York Times.

In short:

Searles Valley Minerals, a mining company in Trona, Calif., is replacing one of its two coal plants with a solar thermal system but says the other may need to stay online for the foreseeable future due to operational demands.
The company will use a concentrating solar power system from start-up GlassPoint, which uses mirrors to generate high heat, a solution that works well in hot, sunny areas but requires a large land footprint and remains rare in the U.S.
Despite California’s push to phase out coal and President Trump’s efforts to revive it, economic and geographic constraints continue to complicate full industrial transitions away from fossil fuels.

Key quote:

“We just think coal is going to be a problem. We’re going to have a hard time sourcing it. We need to be ready to pivot.”

— Dennis Cruise, president of Searles Valley Minerals

Why this matters:

Industrial heat — the kind used in mining, chemical production, and heavy manufacturing — accounts for about half of global energy use, yet it’s rarely mentioned in public climate debates. Unlike home heating or car travel, generating this level of heat without fossil fuels is still tough. Most renewable energy technologies don’t deliver the extreme, continuous heat these facilities need. That leaves industries like the one in Trona stuck with coal, even as it becomes harder to source and politically unpopular. As the U.S. attempts to decarbonize, industrial energy needs present one of the biggest hurdles.

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