Americans are increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of AI, new poll finds
A majority of Americans support limits or clean-energy rules for new data centers as concern over electricity use and water demand rises, the poll found.
- A recent Gallup poll shows that 71% of Americans oppose the construction of AI data centers, demonstrating widespread public resistance to the infrastructure required for artificial intelligence.
- Environmental concerns drive this bipartisan opposition, as 53% of Americans express high concern over artificial intelligence's impact, with many citing excessive water usage and pollution risks from data centers.
- According to Gallup's March 2026 data, opposition is bipartisan, with 75% of Democrats and 63% of Republicans opposing construction where they live.
- Foreign state actors are "amplifying the homegrown data center revolt" as "a wedge against trust in U.S. infrastructure, companies, and government," Alethea's report warned.
- Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez introduced the AI Data Center Moratorium Act to impose a federal freeze on large-scale facility expansion.
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Both Democrats and Republicans Are Increasingly Worried About AI’s Environmental Impact
As data centers break ground in communities across the country, Americans are growing more concerned about the environmental impacts. That’s according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago, which found that about half (53%) of Americans are “extremely” or … The post Both Democrats and Republicans Are Increasingly Worried About AI’s Environmenta…
The one issue where Republicans and Democrats are unified before the midterms, according to this poll
Americans have grown more concerned about the environmental impacts of artificial intelligence over the last year, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.
Americans are increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of AI, new poll finds – WTOP News
On the way home from a recent trip, Eriech Tapia drove past a sea of dark industrial buildings lining an already jam-packed northern Virginia road: data centers. “It was interesting to see how many were going up,” said Tapia, a 30-year-old Republican from Arlington, Virginia, who works in higher education advocacy and policy. He said...
Fort Smith/Fayetteville News
Rising concerns about AI's environmental impact drive calls to limit data centers in the US
Democrats are driving much of the increase in environmental concern, but the poll also reveals broader worries about the local impact of data centers.
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