Berkeley County

Google · Moncks Corner, South Carolina

Save this place +Compare with other sites ↗

The resource footprint

Modelled average

In one day, this campus consumes about

6.8250-metre swimming pools

Filled with the volume of water consumed by the campus and its electricity supply.

The actual estimate4,502,620 US gallons consumed

50-metre pools · 2 metres deep

Each diagram = 1 pool. Partial shading shows the remainder.

At the campus2,470,530 galMaking its electricity2,032,091 gal

Power-plant water may come from a different watershed. This is a volume comparison, not a claim that households lose this water.

At current operating capacity · Annual model spread evenly over time, not a live meter. Site estimates may differ by roughly ±40%.

Comparison sizes & sources

One pool = 50 × 25 × 2 metres = 2.5 million litres (about 660,430 US gallons). Pool depths vary; this is a defined comparison size.

One home-year = 10,791 kWh, the EIA’s 2022 average US residential electricity purchases. This excludes electricity generated at home and is a fixed US benchmark for all sites.

One car-year = 4.6 tonnes CO₂, the EPA’s typical passenger vehicle tailpipe estimate. The campus model is in CO₂e; the comparison expresses approximate climate scale, not equal mixtures of pollutants.

Monthly values are annual totals ÷ 12; daily values are annual totals ÷ 365. Actual demand varies. Comparisons cover the whole campus, including non-AI uses.

Water: see the numbers and sources

This is water used up, mainly through evaporation. Power-generation water may be used in a different watershed.

Total water use1,643M gal/yr

Evaporated on site902M gal

Making the power742M gal

Household comparison20,543homes, at 80,000 gal/year

Pressure on local water: Medium-High — a regional measure of demand compared with available water
Where the water comes from: Groundwater — aquifer withdrawal
Cooling: Evaporative towers; groundwater plus surface water
Basis: Fitted to a published figure of 902 million gallons a year (2025)
Operator table: Withdrew 989 million gallons, discharged 86.8, consumed 902
Claimed vs observed: Google 2026 Environmental Report (FY2025): withdrew 988.5 million gallons, discharged 86.8, consumed 901.7.

Air: see the numbers and sources

The totals include nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide and fine particles. They cover both this site and the power plants supplying it.

Nitrogen oxides221t/yr

Sulphur dioxide374t/yr

Fine particulates35.7t PM2.5

Health (EPA)$37.0M/yr

Health range: $13.0–37.0 million a year. Lower bound is EASIUR national mid-range; upper is EPA benefit-per-ton at a ~$12M VSL.
Statistical deaths: 3.08 a year at that VSL — a national-average conversion from tons, not a local concentration study.
Equals: 276,515 cars of NOx
Where it burns: Southern Co. — Georgia / Alabama
Generation mix: Gas 48 · Nuclear 28 · Coal 15
Diesel backup: Diesel backup is not yet counted for this campus, so on-site air figures are a floor.
CO₂e: 562 kt/yr — climate, not air quality

The project, approvals and community concerns

Who asked for it: Google — self-build
Who approved it: Berkeley County agreements; SC Department of Environmental Services groundwater withdrawal permits — a request to draw up to 1.5 million gallons a day from the Middendorf aquifer drew formal state objections
What it serves: Google Cloud us-east1 and Search infrastructure
IT capacity: 250 MW current capacity / 400 MW full-build scenario

Google consumed 902 million gallons here in 2025. South Carolina's own Department of Natural Resources filed against Google's aquifer permit, arguing the Middendorf is already over-drafted — one of the few cases where a state agency opposed another arm of state government over a data center.

water-stressed basinaquifer drawdown

Keep this guide handy

33.1960°, -80.0326°

Google Maps See it on the map Save to my watchlist

Quote or share these estimates

Gigawatt Ledger (2026). Berkeley County: water and air. https://gigawatt-ledger.pages.dev/site/berkeleysc/. Modelled from disclosed capacity; site-level error ±40%.

Include the estimate’s date, whether it describes current or proposed capacity, and its uncertainty. Get an embeddable card.

Gigawatt Ledger · September 2026. Water and air figures are estimated from public records and disclosed capacity. How we calculate them · Use this in your community.