- Fayette County residents faced water restrictions while unmetered business consumption continued for several months unnoticed.
- County authorities only discovered the hidden data center connections after pressure complaints intensified locally
- QTS consumed millions of gallons before authorities acknowledged unauthorized access to the water system.
The recent moderate to severe drought in the US state of Georgia has strained water resources in Fayette County, leading local authorities to impose conservation measures on households.
However, homeowners in a neighboring housing estate reported unusually low pressure, prompting urgent complaints to authorities, who initially focused on directives to stop watering lawns without revealing the underlying cause.
But the county soon discovered that a massive data center campus was the real source of the problem, as the Quality Technology Services (QTS) facility, known as Project Excalibur, had drawn about 29 million gallons of water through two connections the county didn’t even know existed.
Unauthorized water consumption went unnoticed for months
County Water System Director Vanessa Tigert blamed a procedural error in transitioning to a cloud-based metering system.
Her department apparently has only one employee who handles both inspections and review of plans, and she admitted she couldn’t keep her staff.
The county and QTS disagreed on how long the water was unmetered, with Tigert estimating four months and QTS between 9 and 15 months.
A resident obtained the utility’s May 2025 letter through a public records request, and the truth was eventually revealed that the county had known about QTS’s unlimited connections for months without taking any enforcement action.
Despite the situation, no financial sanctions were imposed and, when asked about the decision, Tigert said Policy“They are our biggest customer and we need to be partners.”
Fayette County opted for customer service over enforcement, calling the relationship a partnership rather than a regulatory obligation.
The QTS campus spans 6.2 million square feet across 13 buildings, with plans for up to 16 structures once completed.
The city expects the project to generate between $150 million and $200 million annually in property tax revenue.
QTS denies using water for cooling
According to QTS, the 29 million gallons were consumed during temporary construction activities, including concreting work, dust control and site preparation.
It uses a closed-loop cooling system for its operational data centers that recirculates water rather than drawing from the municipal supply.
Once fully operational, QTS said its facilities would only need water for domestic needs like bathrooms and kitchens.
QTS owed $147,474 in retroactive fees for unmetered usage, but the county declined to fine the company.
Residents who were asked to stop watering their lawns now know exactly where their water has gone.
Although no fine was imposed, the company paid its overdue bill and the county declared the matter resolved.
Such findings reveal the vulnerabilities of public service oversight during resource crises, potentially eroding public trust when large users evade standard accountability.
If QTS was not a major contributor to property taxes, the county’s response likely would have included financial penalties rather than a waiver of the fine and a partnership apology, with the incident revealing how large corporations can effectively write their own rules when local governments rely on their revenue.
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