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Chicago Tribune: Surging number of data centers around the Great Lakes could lead to water shortages

A new Chicago Tribune article highlights how the rapid growth of data centers across the Great Lakes region could strain already finite water resources. Data centers use enormous volumes of water to keep servers cool, and the rise of artificial intelligence is accelerating their spread into water-abundant regions like the Great Lakes.

The article features insights from Center for Water Policy Director Melissa Scanlan, who underscores that while the Great Lakes are vast, they are not limitless: “Those of us who work in this space think of the Great Lakes more as a finite resource.”

Read the article here: | Chicago Tribune

Read our report here:   | American Bar Association

Center for Water Policy Welcomes Three New Staff 

The Center for Water Policy is excited to welcome Anna Watson and Emilie Washer, who make up the Center’s fifth cohort of postdoctoral water policy specialists through the Sea Grant UW Water Science-Policy Fellows Program. Will Matuska also joins the Center as its third Water Policy and Science Communications Fellow.  

“We’re excited to have Anna, Emilie, and Will on board to help strengthen our water policy research and deepen our ability to protect our shared water resources,” said Melissa Scanlan, Director of the Center and the Lynde B. Uihlein Endowed Chair and Professor in water policy at UW-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences.  

Over the coming year, Emilie and Anna will conduct original legal research and collaborate with the Center’s external partners to examine U.S. water challenges, assess policy alternatives, and support decision makers. This fellowship offers recent law school graduates valuable experience in academic research and development of water policy. 

Anna holds a Juris Doctorate from Washington University School of Law. While pursuing her degree, she also worked at the EPA’s Office of General Council, and Great Rivers Environmental Law Center. She’ll coordinate the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin Water Policy Network and perform law research at the Center.  

Emilie earned her Juris Doctorate from Lewis & Clark Law School with certificates in Environmental & Natural Resources Law and Animal Law. She has prior work experience at the Natural Resources Defense Council, Waitt Institute, and working as a submissions editor for Environmental Law. At the Center, she’ll focus on solutions to emerging water challenges in the Great Lakes region like the development of data centers.  

Will is pursuing his Master of Science in the School of Freshwater Science’s water policy thesis track after graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in environmental studies from Saint John’s University. At the Center, he’ll use his experience writing about and researching environmental policy to communicate our impact and that of our partners.  

Their combined expertise and diverse backgrounds will strengthen the Center’s research capacity, enhance its competitiveness for grants, and deepen its community engagement. 

Follow the Center for Water Policy on X (formerly ), , , and to stay up to date with all the Center’s ongoing research and upcoming events! 

Policy Brief “Abandoned Boats in State Waters: Achieving a Clear and Efficient Response in Wisconsin” 

Abandoned boats are being left on the shores of Wisconsin’s rivers and lakes. Not only are these boats difficult and expensive to remove, but it can be unclear who is responsible for removing them when the owner will not or cannot. After months of watching one of these boats sit on the shores of Milwaukee throughout the winter and well into the spring, Wisconsin lawmakers proposed changing state policy to address the state’s abandoned boat problem. In the policy brief below, we take a deeper look at the issue, the proposed legislation, and potential responsive actions that could deter boat owners from abandoning vessels while at the same time quickening government response time for boat removals. 

Citation:
Emma Ehrlich and Melissa Scanlan, Abandoned Boats in State Waters: Achieving a Clear and Efficient Response in Wisconsin, Policy Brief, Center for Water Policy (2025).

Read our policy brief here:

CenterforWaterPolicy_AbandonedBoatsinStateWatersDownload

Opinion: Milwaukee has turned toxic legacy into civic asset with river cleanups

CWP Water Policy Scholar (2024-2025) and affiliated faculty at the School of Freshwater Sciences James Wasley wrote an opinion piece in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about celebrating the final stages of a 50-year process to restore Milwaukee’s rivers.  

In the article, Wasley outlines how the construction of a facility that will hold toxic contaminants from the Milwaukee Estuary could also be developed into an educational and civic space — highlighting years of work to remove local waterways from the national list of toxic hotspots. Because the city is still finalizing plans for the site, Wasley made a call for “compelling public rationale for what comes next.” He shares his vision, developed during his year as our Scholar, in the piece. 

Read it here:   

The Center is proud of its longstanding work with Milwaukee-area partners to restore Milwaukee’s rivers. Check out the Center’s work surrounding opening the new lakefront land to the public here, here, and here.  

Data Centers Consume Massive Amounts of Water – Companies Rarely Tell the Public Exactly How Much

In a recent article for The Conversation, Peyton McCauley, Water Policy Specialist, and Professor Melissa Scanlan, Director, of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Center for Water Policy examined the growing water demands of data centers driven by artificial intelligence, and why transparency and a consistency in the tracking and reporting of data center water use is needed.

– The Conversation

Center for Water Policy Publishes “Too Close for Comfort: State Regulation of Setbacks From the Great Lakes” Executive Summary and Table 

The Great Lakes water levels fluctuate over a variety of time scales. One way to protect homes and other structures located along the coasts of the Great Lakes from the dangers of fluctuating water levels, floods, waves, and erosion is to place the structures further from the water. Laws dictating how far a structure should be built from a lake and adjacent landforms, such as bluffs or dunes, are called setbacks. Setback requirements exist in state law and in local ordinances. However, states that choose to regulate setbacks vary in how much protection they afford homeowners. The table and executive summary below compare the setback regulations of the eight Great Lakes states: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. The table contains key provisions from each state’s shoreland zoning laws that relate to setbacks from the Great Lakes, and the accompanying executive summary discusses the major commonalities and differences among the states. This research highlights the risks of placing structures close to the Great Lakes and asks readers to consider the effectiveness of their state or local Great Lakes shoreland zoning laws and the necessity of updates to setbacks laws throughout the Great Lakes region.   

Citation:  

Emma Ehrlich, Susanne Anderson, Cora Sutherland, and Melissa Scanlan, Too Close for Comfort: State Regulation of Setbacks From the Great Lakes, Executive Summary and Table of Laws, Center for Water Policy (2025).

Read the Executive Summary: 

Too Close for Comfort: State Regulation of Setbacks From the Great Lakes

Too Close for Comfort_State Regulation of Setbacks From the Great LakesDownload

Download the excel table comparing Great Lakes states laws here: 

Great Lakes Shorland Setback Regulations TableDownload

Featured Image Credit: / The Grand Rapids Press 

Center for Water Policy Welcomes a New Assistant Director!

Center for Water Policy staff smiling around a table at a cafe.

The Center for Water Policy at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences is pleased to announce the appointment of Tressie Kamp as its new Assistant Director. 

Tressie brings a strong foundation in environmental law, policy, and advocacy, along with a deep commitment to mentorship and climate justice. She joins the Center following a distinguished legal career, most recently serving as an Assistant Attorney General at the Wisconsin Department of Justice from 2019 to 2025. In this role, she practiced environmental law and led enforcement efforts to uphold state laws protecting clean air, water, and public health. 

There and as a staff attorney at Midwest Environmental Advocates, she actively mentored law students and new attorneys, a passion she brings with her to the Center for Water Policy. 

Tressie holds a Juris Doctorate from the Cardozo School of Law, where she published research on the disproportionate impacts of climate change-induced natural disasters on women and children. She also earned a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Ecology, with a certificate in Environmental Studies, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. 

At the Center for Water Policy, Tressie will help expand and advance the Center’s research mission, support staff development, and lead efforts in financial planning and grant writing. Her leadership will strengthen the Center’s ability to produce impactful, policy-relevant water research that serves communities across Wisconsin and beyond. 

“Tressie brings a combination of policy expertise, government insight, and passion for clean water,” said Melissa Scanlan, Director of the Center and the Lynde B. Uihlein Endowed Chair and Professor in water policy at UW-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences. “We are thrilled to welcome her to our team.” 

Join us in welcoming Tressie Kamp to the Center for Water Policy!

Great Lakes Offshore Wind Could Power the Region and Beyond 

Cora Sutherland, Interim Assistant Director, and Professor Melissa Scanlan, Director, of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Center for Water Policy recently explored how offshore wind in the Great Lakes could meet regional electricity needs – and why now is the time for states to lead the way – in a new article for The Conversation. 

– The Conversation 

Water Policy Fellows Highlight Public Access and Data Center Impacts at the “pool v”Great Lakes Art-Science Gathering

On June 11th, Water Policy Fellows and discussed the Center for Water Policy’s research on public access to the coast and the water impact of data centers to a group of artists gathering in Milwaukee for the “pool v” workshop. Assistant Professor Ben Peterson also discussed his research on microbial mercury methylation.

This event aimed to bridge the gap between water research and art in the Great Lakes region, encouraging new conversations at the intersection of science, creativity, and water. Connecting disciplines, creating impact!

Learn more about the “pool v” workshop here:

SFS Students Featured on NPR for Flood Resilience Work

Graduate students from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences — , , and — were recently featured on W51ÁÔĆć 89.7 FM – Milwaukee’s NPR for their work addressing flood risks and resilience in Milwaukee.

As part of Melissa Scanlan’s Water Consulting course, these students, along with Stephanie Gruenloh and Franco Ferrante partnered with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to produce “Rising Waters, Rising Costs,” a report examining the human and environmental impact of urban flooding, including historically underserved neighborhoods like Metcalfe Park.

Their research highlights:
âś… Climate-driven flood risks
âś… Inequities in FEMA mapping
âś… The importance of green infrastructure
âś… The financial toll of inaction

We’re proud to see SFS students applying science to real-world applications — and getting recognized on a national platform for it!

? Read & listen to the full story on W51ÁÔĆć/NPR:
? Read the report “Rising Waters, Rising Costs”: