The environmental cost of artificial intelligence data centers: a literature-based assessment for sustainable policy action

Hadassah Laís de Sousa Santana, Thaís Chaves e Silva and Miguel José Neves de Resende

Chapter 4 in Frontiers in the Low-carbon Transition, 2026, pp 55-60 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) has intensified global demand for computing infrastructure, driving the large-scale growth of data centers and amplifying their environmental impacts. This chapter reviews academic and institutional literature on AI-oriented data centers, focusing on energy consumption, carbon emissions, water use, electronic waste, and regulatory gaps. The analysis demonstrates that AI workloads substantially increase electricity and cooling requirements, with environmental outcomes shaped by local energy matrices, climatic conditions, and governance frameworks. It further highlights global inequalities in the distribution of environmental burdens and the absence of standardized sustainability metrics capable of supporting effective regulation. The chapter argues that aligning AI with sustainability objectives requires integrated policy frameworks combining technological innovation, transparent environmental accounting, and coordinated international regulation.

Keywords: Artificial Intelligence; Data Centers; Environmental Sustainability; Digital Infrastructure; Environmental Governance (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781049412115
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