COMMITTEE AGENDA MEMORANDUM
Joint RWPAC with Cities of San Jose/Santa Clara
Government Code § 84308 Applies: Yes ☐ No ☒
(If “YES” Complete Attachment A - Gov. Code § 84308)
SUBJECT: title
Receive Update on the Recycled Water Use at Data Centers in the Cities of San Jose and Santa Clara.
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RECOMMENDATION: Recommendation
Receive an update on recycled water use at data center in the Cities of San Jose and Santa Clara.
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SUMMARY:
Santa Clara County hosts about 110 data centers, most of which are concentrated in the cities of Santa Clara (57) and San José (42). In North San José, three proposed data centers are currently in the planning stage, and once operational, the anticipated recycled water demand is approximately 3,500 acre-feet-per-year. The Cities of San José and Santa Clara co-own the Regional Wastewater Facility, which collaborates with Valley Water on the Silicon Valley Advanced Water Purification Center. Recycled water, blended with purified water is supplied via the South Bay Water Recycling Program to customers in San José, Santa Clara and Milpitas.
The City of Santa Clara has enacted Article IV Chapter 13.15 in its municipal code, mandating recycled water usage at these types of facilities. As a result, the majority of Santa Clara’s data centers use recycled water.
The City of San José has adopted the Energy and Water Building Performance Ordinance (BPO) as part of its Climate Smart San José program to help achieve greenhouse gas emission reduction and water conservation goals, including requiring owners of nonresidential and multifamily buildings to track their energy and water use. Buildings are required to meet energy and water efficiency standards on a rolling five-year basis, or perform improvements if standards are not met.
In addition to recycled water to reduce potable water use, data centers have implemented advanced cooling technologies with low water use, such as adiabatic systems, chip-level and closed-loop liquid cooling systems. Currently, ten new data centers are proposed within the county, and these facilities are anticipated to have low potable water demands due to the required recycled water usage and the adoption of advanced cooling technologies.
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND EQUITY IMPACT:
This is an informational item and is not subject to environmental justice analysis.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: PowerPoint
UNCLASSIFIED MANAGER:
Manager
Kirsten Struve, 408-630-3138