WaterMark / Jurisdictions / Pinal County, AZ (Casa Grande / Eloy)
Pinal County, AZ (Casa Grande / Eloy): Data Center Water Impact
Reference data for evaluating a data center proposal in Pinal County, AZ (Casa Grande / Eloy). Every figure below is a stored value with its primary source attached. Facility-scale results are produced by the assessment tool.
Water supply
| Metric | Value | Source / basis |
|---|---|---|
| Water utility | Arizona Water Company (Pinal Valley) / CAP + groundwater | Utility of record |
| Supply source | Groundwater + Central Arizona Project (Colorado River) — Pinal AMA | Utility of record |
| Treatment capacity | 60 MGD | Water stress: WRI Aqueduct 4.0 (Kuzma et al. 2023), Middle Gila basin HUC-8 15050100, Extremely High category (Lower Gila/Pinal AMA, severe groundwater overdraft). Utility: Arizona Water Company, Casa Grande / Pinal Valley. |
| Water rate | $3.39 / 1,000 gal | Arizona Water Company (Pinal Valley) / CAP + groundwater published rate schedule |
| Watershed stress | Extremely High (4.6 / 5) | Water stress: WRI Aqueduct 4.0 (Kuzma et al. 2023), Middle Gila basin HUC-8 15050100, Extremely High category (Lower Gila/Pinal AMA, severe groundwater overdraft). Utility: Arizona Water Company, Casa Grande / Pinal Valley. |
Watershed consumptive use
Basin: Middle Gila (HUC-8 15050100). Figures are consumptive use, not withdrawal, because evaporative data center loss is consumptive. USGS data year 2015.
| Category | Consumptive use (MGD) | Share of basin |
|---|---|---|
| Residential | 65 | 6.5% |
| Thermoelectric power | 1.45 | 0.1% |
| Industrial | 0.23 | 0.0% |
| Irrigation | 935.11 | 93.2% |
| Mining | 2.08 | 0.2% |
| Existing data centers | 0 | 0.0% |
| Total | 1003.9 | 100.0% |
Total is the sum of the categories listed above. Shares are each category divided by that total. Source: USGS Estimated Use of Water 2015, county-level data release (Dieter et al. 2018), Pinal County, AZ. Values are 2015 freshwater withdrawals (Mgal/d): PS 63.24 + DO 1.76 = residential 65.0; IN 0.23; IR 935.11; MI 2.08; PT 1.45.
Grid generation water (Scope 2)
Generating the electricity a data center consumes evaporates water at the power plant. That volume is real, it is attributable, and it is excluded from most corporate "water positive" accounting. On a thermal grid it is frequently comparable to the facility's own cooling water.
| Metric | Value | Source / basis |
|---|---|---|
| Grid region | WECC (Southwest) | Electrical District No. 3 (ED3) |
| Electric utility | Electrical District No. 3 (ED3) | Utility of record |
| Grid water intensity | 0.33 gal / kWh | Macknick et al. 2012 recirculating-cooling consumption factors, weighted by the WECC-Southwest (AZ) gas + coal + solar mix per EIA Arizona. Same 0.33 gal/kWh basis as the existing chandler-az / mesa-az APS-SRP entries. |
| Local peak demand | 480 MW | Electrical District No. 3 (ED3) |
| Modeled rate impact | 12% to 28% | See methodology |
Where this water is consumed: WECC-SW thermal generation (gas, retiring coal) serving Pinal sits partly within the Gila system; with Project Bella (480 MW gas + 440 MW battery) sited locally to power the Casa Grande DC corridor, a growing share of Scope 2 water lands in-basin. Irrigation (935 Mgal/d) dominates withdrawals, so the basin is already in severe overdraft.
Run this county at your facility size. The assessment tool computes direct (Scope 1) and indirect (Scope 2) water for a specific load, cooling system, and mitigation stack, with the same citations attached.
Open Pinal County, AZ (Casa Grande / Eloy) in the assessment tool
Reducing the footprint here
A high stress reading is a design constraint, not a verdict. Closed-loop and dry or hybrid cooling, adiabatic assist, immersion, and reclaimed or non-potable sourcing each move the direct number, and siting against a cleaner grid mix moves the indirect number. The solutions catalog lists each option with its water reduction, its energy and cost tradeoff, and its source.
Related counties
| County | Water source | Watershed stress |
|---|---|---|
| Pima County, AZ (Tucson) | Colorado River / Central AZ Project + Aquifer | Extremely High (4.2/5) |
| Chandler, AZ | Salt River Project / CAP / Reclaimed | High (3.9/5) |
| Mesa, AZ (Maricopa County) | Salt River Project / CAP (Colorado River) + groundwater | High (3.8/5) |
How these numbers are derived
Assumptions, formulas, and the full source list are in the methodology. WaterMark is published by Standard Water Corp and is not affiliated with any data center developer, utility, or government agency.