Poll shows Americans are increasingly alarmed by AI’s ecological footprint

What the report says

A new U.S. survey covered by Al Jazeera shows growing public concern about the environmental costs of artificial intelligence, especially the energy and water demands of the data centers that support it. The poll, conducted by The Associated Press, NORC at the University of Chicago and the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute, surveyed 3,424 adults in August and was published on Sept. 16, 2026.

The results suggest that 53% of Americans are now “extremely” or “very” concerned about AI’s environmental impact, up from 41% in last year’s findings. The article says respondents expressed particularly strong worry that AI-driven data centers could raise electricity prices and strain local water supplies in the communities where they are built. Concern was reported across party lines, though Democrats showed the highest levels of alarm.

Al Jazeera reported that the findings reflect wider unease as thousands of data centers operate across the United States and more are being built to meet demand for cloud computing and AI. The story notes that states including Virginia and Texas have become major hubs for these facilities. It also places the issue in a broader policy context, with President Donald Trump urging communities to welcome data-center investment for the jobs it may bring, while critics and some researchers warn that local infrastructure and natural resources may bear the costs.