COP31 kicks off, with data center emissions a major concern

The U.N. Climate Change Conference in Antalya, Turkey (COP31) kicked off today, and a major topic was hyperscale data centers and the UN’s AI pledge urging governments and tech companies to disclose and reduce data centers’ energy usage and emissions.

As reported in today’s WSJ’s Pro Business, a new Harvard-led study of 403 U.S. hyperscale data centers showed that between 2024 and 2025, those data centers were responsible for 25.7 million metric tons of CO2, 60% of which came from fossil fuels. Approximately 68 to 99 terawatt hours of electricity were consumed by the facilities in that time period.

To show that a contingent of the U.S. remains engaged in climate cooperation, despite U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, delegations representing about 20 U.S. Congress members traveled to COP31. Many touted data center oversight as a legislative priority, with a focus on exemptions for certain data centers from Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act disclosure requirements, and bypasses of NEPA timelines for data centers of 100 MWs or $500 million in capital. 

The reality, however, is that passing laws to override existing mandates and rules may fail because a two-thirds “veto-busting” supermajority would be extremely difficult to achieve (290 votes in the House and 67 votes in the Senate). Without a supermajority, standalone legislation is highly unlikely.

But legislators – now keenly aware of public sentiment about unchecked data center development in certain states – may try to attach funding riders to upcoming appropriations bills, as well as impose state authority to curb expansion and force transparency about energy usage and carbon emissions by data centers.