A new report finds electricity use and carbon emissions from California data centers nearly doubled in recent years, with water use climbing even more. Researchers say limited transparency makes it hard to measure impacts, as lawmakers have stalled or rejected efforts to add oversight.
A December poll by the Public Policy Institute of California found only 4% of surveyed likely voters said the environment and climate change were the “most important problem” facing the U.S. Elected state officials and those seeking office are emphasizing pocketbook concerns.
California recorded one of the steepest single-year declines in climate pollution in its history in 2023, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 3 percent in a year when the state’s economy continued to expand.
Renewable energy accounted for more than half of California's electricity mix for the first time in 2024 as the state's reliance on fossil fuels reached a record low, according to the latest California Green Innovation Index released Dec. 16.
