Community and environmental groups have joined the call to suspend data centre approvals in Australia while authorities determine the true impact of the artificial intelligence hubs.
Sydney Water also repeated its warning data centres could use up to one quarter of the city's drinking water within a decade, and infrastructure investment would need to rise to meet demand.
The warnings came on Friday at the third hearing of the NSW government's data centre inquiry, which heard from organisations including energy providers, local councils and business groups.
Australia has become the second-largest destination for data centre investments worldwide as tech companies attempt to meet demand for AI tools.
But questions remain over their electricity and water consumption, Carbon Zero Initiative strategy lead Alexander Hoysted said, and energy providers have had little chance to assess their impact.
