One of the largest data centers is slated for construction in Bielsko-Biala. Investments of this type are only just beginning to emerge in Poland, and understandably, this raises concerns among residents. Investors and local politicians are trying to allay our concerns by referring to the creation of new opportunities for investment, economic development, and Poland's greater market attractiveness. The natural environment is once again omitted from these discussions, or dismissed with classic business slogans about sustainable development and ensuring environmental sustainability.
In this analysis, I would like to present current knowledge on the environmental impact of data centers, share conclusions from investments made in other countries, and present counterarguments to the environmental forecast published by engineer Karolina Kloc from the City Development Office.
The overall impact of data centers on climate and the environment
Let's start with the most obvious aspect - data centers consume enormous amounts of electricity, which is associated with greenhouse gas emissions. In 2022, they accounted for 2-3% of global electricity consumption and 0.4-0.75% of all emissions ( Cao et al., 2023 ). This may not seem like much, but we must consider that this sector is still developing, with plans to increase capacity to ~100 GW by 2030, doubling current consumption ( 2026 Global Data Center Outlook , jll.com). Despite the development of renewable energy sources, they are not (and likely will not be) able to meet the current needs of people, production, and the rapidly growing technology industry ( Prokopowicz, 2025 ). Therefore, a significant portion of the energy powering data centers comes from fossil fuels. The climate aspect is further related to the fact that the weather is getting warmer, which will require increased energy consumption for cooling.
Data centers themselves do not exist in isolation from other industries. Components for building machines must be extracted, which entails not only the enormous environmental impact of mining operations, including deforestation, water pollution, and threats to biodiversityin Oceania, nearly 37% of cobalt mines were located in nature conservation areas ( Feng et al., 2025 ), but also significant threats to local communities. Mining minerals such as cobalt, lithium, and gold is associated with increased political instability in the region, slave labor (including child labor), and irreversible health impacts (ibid.). One can only imagine the suffering of both human and nonhuman beings involved in producing the electrical devices we use every day.
DL Invest Group, the entity responsible for building the data center in Bielsko-Biala, claims that: " Our data centers are powered 100% by green energy ( https://dlinvest.pl/data-center/ ). Unfortunately, there's no mention of whether all of this comes from photovoltaic panels. Unlikely, given the planned 82MW for data center operations, and their farm is capable of producing 10MWp. A MWp unit represents the amount of power produced during full exposure to sunlight, which doesn't happen all day long. Currently, Bielsko-Biala is undergoing a transition from electrical installations to gas-fired power. Does the company also consider this source of mythical green energy? It's worth noting that burning gas releases methane into the atmosphere, which, over a 10-20 year period, has an 86-times greater impact on global warming than carbon dioxide ( Maciag and Wiekiera, 2022 ). DL Invest Group doesn't mention much about other forms of technology that can enhance their reliability while respecting the environment , but it's worth mentioning the rebound effect . This effect means that energy-efficient technologies don't actually reduce resource consumption. On the contrary, they lead to increased consumption due to lower costs and increased availability ( Prokopowicz, 2025 ).
In short, the development of data centers runs counter to all efforts to combat and adapt to climate change. There are no reliable assurances or analyses that would reassure us that current construction will not contribute to the global trend of high-emission investments serving corporations involved in cloud gaming, AI, and other cloud services.
Data Center Cooling Problem
Anyone who uses electrical devices has experienced how hot they can become after prolonged use. This heat negatively impacts the device's long-term health, so this aspect must be taken into account in large-scale data centers.
Data centers consume hundreds of thousands of liters of water daily. It is estimated that 10-20 MW facilities consume 416 million liters of water per year ( Yañez-Barnuevo, 2025 ). For larger projects, this amounts to nearly 7 billion liters of water per year, equivalent to the average water consumption of a city with a population of 10,000-50,000.
Communities around the world where construction has taken place are fighting big tech companies to halt the project. In Mexico, Querétaro, data centers run by companies like Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, and ODATA are using billions of liters of water to power their servers, while the local population last year experienced the worst drought in decades ( Bearne, 2025 ). In Georgia, on the Flint River, Meta's data center is silting up the river. This is sediment runoffand potentially flocculants. These are chemicals used in construction to bind soil and prevent erosion, but if they enter the water system, they can create sediment. The company has pleaded not guilty ( Fleury and Jimenez, 2025 ).
A Bloomberg analysis estimates that as many as two-thirds of new data centers are located in arid regions with limited access to water ( Nicolletti, Ma, and Bas, 2025 ). The map below, created by the Guardian, shows the locations of 632 data centers belonging to Amazon, Microsoft, and Google, along with regions with limited access to water. Communities living in these places already struggle with drought and poverty, a situation that giant corporations seem oblivious to when profits and low-cost investment in a country of the Global South loom on the horizon.
The impact of the data center on the local environment
Data centers are noisy. The main sources of noise include generators (85-100 dBA), cooling systems (55-85 dBA), and power drawn from the power grid. Safe noise levels are around 70 dBA, while exposure above 85 dBA is hazardous to hearing ( Richardson, 2024 ). Besides being harmful and uncomfortable for humans, industrial noise has a significant negative impact on animals. A common consequence of noise exposure is increased adrenaline and cortisol levels, which can be interpreted as a stress response ( Kight and Swaddle, 2011 ). However, in the case of a data center, when animals experience constant noise, behavioral changes are crucial. These include: changes in predator-prey interactions, chronic stress, impaired communication between individuals, and disrupted migration paths ( Slabbekoorn, 2019 ). It's important to remember that many animals can hear frequencies beyond the range of human hearing. Therefore, the effects of sound pollution can be much more harmful to them.
Conclusions from the environmental forecast
The environmental forecast was published in December 2025 by the City Development Office. It was written without taking into account the construction of the data center. Nevertheless, the arguments presented below may still be valid, given that such an investment is not subject to the obligation to conduct a separate environmental forecast. Therefore, when the investment is completed, it is possible that environmental issues will not be taken into account in the issuance of appropriate permits.
Air circulation
As mentioned earlier, data centers generate enormous amounts of heat, which must then be released outdoors. This leads to the generation of heat clouds around the investment. The Biala River Valley is a key region for air exchange, characterized by moderately favorable wind conditions ( IMGW, 2016 ). The city has long struggled with smog, so focusing on free air circulation in this region is crucial.
Threat to strategic groundwater resources
The investment is located directly adjacent to the Biala River, within the boundaries of the Biala River Local Groundwater Reservoir, which is highly vulnerable to groundwater, and within ecological and ventilation corridors connected to the Biala River Valley. This means that the city has decided to limit construction and development of projects in this area. Unfortunately, it is safe to assume that the construction of the data center will significantly weaken Bielsko-Biala's water resources. The city is poor in groundwater, which is crucial for providing water for the economy and the daily lives of residents, is responsible for local climatic conditions (in terms of temperature and humidity), and is crucial for sustaining ecosystems.
The environmental forecast extensively discusses the city's water access problems. However, it neglects to consider the impact of the planned investment on this situation. Without providing a specific reason, it claims that the draft local development plan incorporates appropriate solutions and protective measures, and that its implementation, in accordance with separate regulations, will not significantly impact the state and quality of water, health, and sanitation in the area covered by the draft plan and its surroundings. The city's funding program may facilitate the implementation of solutions such as "green roofs ." It's fantastic that there is funding for green roofs, but it won't save us from droughts and floods. The forecast skillfully employs greenwashing tactics, creating the illusion that a given investment is compatible with nature and ecology, while in reality, it inadequately addresses the problem. DL Invest Group employs the same strategy, claiming they are environmentally conscious and care about the environment.
In 2022, Sustainalytics analyzed 122 data center companies and found that only 16% transparently disclosed information about their investments' water management and risk management ( Johnson and Molnar, 2022 ). Similarly, DL Invest Group's website and portfolio contain no mention of water or its use by the company in Bielsko-Biala (as of March 11, 2026).
What can we realistically expect in terms of water resources? Based on estimates of the current distribution of cooling technologies, it is estimated that an average 100-megawatt large-scale data center in the United States will consume a total of about 2 million liters of water per daythe equivalent of about 6,500 households ( Cozzi, 2024 ). Where will DL Invest Group get these resources? How will they cool their server rooms? Why does the environmental analysis seem to ignore the fact that Bielsko-Biala's dwindling water resources should be given the highest priority for conservation? Once again, we encounter environmental analyses in which our knowledge of the threats to nature and people is vast, yet ignored in practice to push forward a harmful investment.
Climate
In the context of climate, we already know that data center investments contradict all assumptions of the green transformation, given that they cannot currently be fully powered by renewable energy. However, the environmental forecast claims that the potential impact of implementing the draft plan on climate change adaptation may not be negative due to the approval of renewable energy generation facilities and the implementation of blue-green infrastructure, which is intended, among other things, to retain and manage stormwater. As previously mentioned, a 10 MWp photovoltaic farm will not be sufficient to support such a large investment. Blue-green infrastructure includes retention ponds, basins, reservoirs, bioretention ditches, infiltration ditches, rain gardens, green bus stops, roofs, facades and walls, permeable surfaces, structural substrates, green areas and wetlands, etc. ( Department of Water Management and Inland Navigation, 2023 ). What solutions will be implemented in this case? The forecast highlights the high risk of water pollution in areas near the investment. How will DL Invest Group prevent this?
Summary
In point 12, the authors of the Forecast point out difficulties resulting from technical deficiencies or gaps in modern knowledge , and DL Invest Group fails to provide detailed information on counteracting negative environmental effects. This means there is no basis for claiming that the investment will have no impact on the city's natural environment or water resources, which I have attempted to demonstrate.
Therefore, it's time to get involved in countering investments that will negatively impact nature. Nature won't protect itself, and we can't survive without it. We must understand that we can't satisfy our hunger with money and online games.
Green Star
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Sources:
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Cozzi, L. et al. (2024). Energy and AI. World Energy Outlook Special Report. International Energy Agency.
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https://federacja-anarchistyczna.pl/2026/05/28/wplyw-centrum-danych-na-srodowisko-naturalne/
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Source: A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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