AI Drinks First?: Why Transparency is Vital to Protecting Local Waters

Why is public trust necessary in the discussions on data centers?

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Published March 18th, 2026

Written by Emily Tschudy

Artificial Intelligence has quickly become a dominant source of controversy as people challenge its impacts on privacy, education, job markets and more. Recently, Wisconites have been joining the discourse as their home state quickly becomes a hub for new AI data centers. Just this year, Microsoft has invested billions of dollars to support development in cities like Mount Pleasant and Kenosha according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. While there are numerous implications for the economic and social effects of these data centers, many residents and community organizations have raised their concerns regarding what these projects mean for Wisconsin's water. When it comes to reports of water and energy use, key developers often offer limited and vague information. This highlights an even broader issue—the issue of transparency. As the age of Artificial Intelligence comes into full force, will public trust withstand the pressure? 

On Sept. 15, 2025, the non-profit group Midwest Environmental Advocates issued a legal complaint against the City of Racine on behalf of Milwaukee Riverkeeper, a non-profit that works to support the health of the Milwaukee River Basin. The MEA claimed that the City of Racine violated Wisconsin’s Public Records Law, WIS. STAT. § 19.35(4)(a) by illegally delaying the release of a document containing the data centers projected water usage. The reasonable response time for a request such as this is approximately 10 business days. However, this document was originally requested February 17, 2025 leaving over 100 days between the initial request and the city’s response. Ajuman Islam, Executive Director of the Racine Water Utility, finally responded to Milwaukee Riverkeeper’s repeated requests, denying access to the report “due to confidentiality,” as stated in the MEA’s complaint. Dr. Islam’s response is concerning as it raises questions about how local communities can hold their government accountable amidst such transformative projects if they can’t even access basic water usage reports.

Why is it so important for this information to be accessible in the first place? It enables transparency. Transparency is a crucial feature in maintaining good relations and compromise between stakeholders—and projects as big as these data-centers have numerous. Inadequate functioning of transparency mechanisms such as the Public Records Law effectively undermines other legal safeguards, like the Wisconsin Public Trust Doctrine. The Wisconsin Public Trust Doctrine protects citizens rights to 1) Navigation through waterways 2) have protected water quality, and 3) enjoy recreational water activities such as boating, fishing, swimming, etc. This foundational statute is especially crucial to preserving local environments in the wake of global warming. This element, in combination with the finding by Virginia Mercury that 80% of local governments engaging with data center projects signed NDA’s, only amplifies the stress of transparency and accountability. In order to truly maintain these protections, Wisconsinites must have the freedom to not only scrutinize industrial projects, but also evaluate the ways in which they would be personally impacted. 

Artificial Intelligence has become such a key component of modern society that it would be irrational to argue for the halt of data-center projects. AI’s importance does not outweigh the people’s right to protect their local environment, however. AI development severely outpaces the legal systems capacity to enact new laws which is why, going forward, it is essential that public transparency statutes such as Wisconsin's Public Record Law are upheld even if they challenge major economic projects. In the meantime, it seems to be time for the development of a new safeguard providing explicit guidance on balancing the tradeoffs between environmental protection and technological advancement.

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