De datacenterboom ferbrûkt lân en wetter yn hiel Nederlân
May 27, 2026 · Frisian News
Data centers in the Netherlands now use more water than Amsterdam's entire population. Tech companies and American investors are buying up farmland and agricultural areas to build server farms, raising questions about who controls the country's digital infrastructure.
FryskYn de ôfrûne trije jier hawwe Amerikaanske datasintrum-behearders en harren Nederlânske partners 2.400 hektare lânbougrûn yn Noard-Hollân, Utrecht en Gelderlân kocht of hierd. Dit areaal groeit elk jier mei sa'n 600 hektare. In inkeld grut datasintrum ferbrûkt 15 miljoen liter wetter deis foar koeling, neffens sifers fan it Nederlânske Wetterskip. Dat oerstiicht it deistige wetterferbrûk fan in stêd fan 40.000 minsken. Nederlân telt hjoed mear as 180 datasintra, tsjin minder as 100 yn 2015.
De wierlike eigeners bliuwe dreech te efterheljen. Microsoft, Amazon en Google bouwe foarsjennings net altyd ûnder harren eigen namme. Se wurkje fia holdingmaatskippijen, fêstguodpartijen en lokale partners. Amerikaanske ynvestearringsfûnsen besitte oandielen yn de measte nije bouprojekten. ABN AMRO en ING hawwe mear as de helte fan alle datasintrum-projekten finansearre dy't sûnt 2020 goedkard binne. Gjin fan beide banken publisearre rapporten oer wetterferbrûk of risiko's op boaiemfersmoarging foardat sy lieningen goedkarden. Op fragen antwurden de wurdfierders fan beide banken net.
Lokale oerheden goedkarden de measte fergunningen sûnder earnstich miljeutoets. In ûndersyk yn 2024 troch de Nederlânske miljeugroep Milieudefensie fûn dat mar twa fan fyftjin gemeenten ûnôfhinklike stúdzjes nei de gefolgen foar it wetter fregen. It lânbouministearje yn Den Haach joech algemiene fergunningen út dy't datasintrum-bou yn beskerme feanen tastiene. Amtners seine dat sy stimulearre waarden troch de bane-beloften fan ûntwikkelders, hoewol de measte datasintra tusken 50 en 100 minsken fêst yn tsjinst hawwe.
Wetterspanning yn Nederlân berikket no krisisnivo's yn 'e simmermoannten. De Ryn en de Maas sakje nei histoaryske leechpunten. Boeren pompe mear grûnwetter om dat te kompensearjen, wylst datasintra stedlik wetter kontraktearje. Utrecht en Noard-Hollân kundigen beide yn 2025 wetterrantsoenearringsprogramma's oan. Gjin fan beide gemeenten hie oerlis plege mei boeren of ynwenners foardat sy langduorjende wetterkontrakten mei techbedriuwen foar tsientallen miljoenen euro's tekenen.
Gjin inkele Nederlânske politike partij hat in stop of befriezing fan nije datasintrum-fergunningen easke. It Ministearje fan Ekonomyske Saken beskriuwt de sektor as fitaal foar nasjonale konkurrinsje. Wat sy net sizze is dat dizze serverboeren hast gjin belestingopbringsten generearje yn lytse gemeenten. De data giet troch Nederlân hinne nei servers earne oars. It wetter is fuort.
In the past three years, American data center operators and their Dutch partners have bought or leased 2,400 hectares of farmland in the provinces of North Holland, Utrecht, and Gelderland. This acreage grows by roughly 600 hectares each year. A single large data center consumes 15 million liters of water daily for cooling, according to figures from the Dutch Water Authority. That exceeds the daily water use of a city of 40,000 people. The Netherlands hosts more than 180 data centers today, up from fewer than 100 in 2015.
The real owners remain difficult to trace. Microsoft, Amazon, and Google do not always build facilities under their own names. They work through holding companies, property firms, and local partners. American investment funds own stakes in most new construction. ABN AMRO and ING have financed more than half of all data center projects approved since 2020. None of these banks published reports on water consumption or soil contamination risks before approving loans. When asked, spokespeople for both banks declined to comment on their lending standards.
Local governments rubber-stamped most permits without serious environmental review. A 2024 investigation by the Dutch environmental group Milieudefensie found that only two of fifteen municipalities requested independent water impact studies. The agriculture ministry in The Hague issued general permits that allowed data center construction in protected wetlands. Officials said they were encouraged by job creation claims from developers, though most data centers employ between 50 and 100 people permanently.
Water stress in the Netherlands now reaches crisis levels in summer months. The Rhine and Meuse rivers drop to historic lows. Farmers pump more groundwater to compensate, while data centers contract for municipal water supplies. Utrecht and North Holland both announced water rationing programs in 2025. Neither municipality had consulted with farmers or residents before signing long-term water contracts with tech firms worth tens of millions of euros.
No Dutch political party has demanded a halt or freeze on new data center permits. The Ministry of Economic Affairs describes the sector as vital for national competitiveness. What they do not say is that these server farms generate almost no tax revenue in small municipalities. The data passes through the Netherlands to servers elsewhere. The water stays gone.
Published May 27, 2026 · Frisian News · Ljouwert, Fryslân