Ten Across Conversations

As water scarcity intensifies across the Colorado River Basin, public attention has increasingly focused on data centers, AI, and the growing demand for resources in the Sun Belt. But are these technologies really driving the region's water challenges—or is the story more complicated?In this episode of Ten Across Conversations, host Duke Reiter speaks with water policy expert Sarah Porter about the realities behind water use in the American West. Porter explains why shortages on the Colorado River are rooted as much in decades of over-allocation and management decisions as in climate change, and why common assumptions about population growth, urban development, and industrial water consumption often miss the mark.The conversation explores the rise of data centers, the public concerns surrounding their water and energy demands, and the challenges communities face in balancing economic development with long-term resilience. Porter also offers a candid assessment of Arizona's water future, the difficult choices ahead, and why protecting groundwater, improving efficiency, and developing new water supplies will be critical for sustaining growth in an increasingly arid region.A thoughtful and timely discussion about water, technology, public perception, and the decisions that will shape the future of the Ten Across geography. Relevant Articles and Resources  The Kyl Center for Water Policy at the Morrison Institute Arizona Water Blueprint Report: From Copper Cattle and Cotton to Chips and Cloud Computing: Large Water Uses in Central Arizona. (Kyl Center for Water Policy. February 2026) Arizona Becomes Bellwether In Debate Over Data Centers’ Growing Demand Of Power And Water. (International Business Times. June 18 2026) Arizona Data Center Tax Incentive Pause Signed by Governor Hobbs. (Bloomberg Tax. June 15 2026)Tensions Are Rising Among States That Rely on the Colorado River. (New York Times. June 15, 2026)Groundwater supplies in the Colorado River basin are falling fast. Is there a solution? (WBUR. June 15, 2026) What's more important, Arizona, building houses or water? (Rhett Larson for The Arizona Republic, May 2026) Relevant Ten Across Conversations Podcasts Why 2026 Will Decide the Future of Water in the West, with Rhett Larson (June 4, 2026) The Hard Decisions Ahead for Lower Basin Colorado River States with guest Terry Goddard (December 5, 2025)Latest Deadpool Projections Inject New Urgency into Colorado River Negotiations with guests Kathryn Sorensen and Sarah Porter (September 19, 2025)Understanding Groundwater Risks in the Southwest with Jay Famiglietti (June 6, 2025) Checking in on Tense Colorado River Negotiations with Anne Castle and John Fleck (April 10, 2025) Episode Credits  Host: Duke ReiterAudio Production: Louie DuranResearch and support provided by: Kate Carefoot, Rae Ulrich, and Sabine Butler 

As the Colorado River approaches a pivotal moment facing historically low flows and record-breaking shortages, decisions made in 2026 will help determine the future of water, energy, and economic security across the American West. Today, Ten Across Conversations shares an episode from Arizona State University's Labcoat Optional podcast, featuring Ten Across friend and water law expert Rhett Larson.With existing Colorado River operating agreements approaching expiration, stakeholders across seven states, tribal nations, and two countries are grappling with how to manage a resource that faces increasing pressure from aridification and competing demands. Larson explains why these negotiations are among the most consequential water policy discussions in decades and what they reveal about the challenges ahead for communities throughout the Southwest.Drawing connections between water governance, urban development, climate adaptation, and regional resilience, Lab Coat Optional host Pete Zroika chats with Larson to explore how long-foreseen challenges in the Colorado River Basin are becoming a present-day reality—and why rethinking our assumptions about growth and sustainability may be essential for the future.Guest BioRhett Larson is a Professor of Law and the Richard Morrison Professor of Water Law at the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, where his research focuses on the impact of technological innovation on water rights regimes, particularly transboundary waters, and the sustainability implications of a human right to water. He specializes in dispute resolution and improved processes in water rights adjudications in Arizona and the Colorado River Basin. Professor Larson also practiced environmental and natural resource law with law firms in Arizona, focusing on water rights, water quality, and real estate transactions.Relevant Articles and Resources What's more important, Arizona, building houses or water? (Rhett Larson for The Arizona Republic, May 2026)Agencies in 3 states sign MOU to share water across dry Colorado River basin (Times of San Diego, June 2026)West prepares for extreme measures to relieve pressure on Colorado River (Marketplace, May 2026)Explore the Kyl Center’s Arizona Water Blueprint to find out the source of your waterJust Add Water: Solving the World's Problems Using its Most Precious Resource by Rhett B. Larson (Oxford University Press)Day Zero: How Cities Run Out of Water by Rhett B. Larson (Cambridge University Press, forthcoming 2027)Relevant Ten Across Conversations PodcastsThe Hard Decisions Ahead for Lower Basin Colorado River States with guest Terry Goddard (December 5, 2025)Latest Deadpool Projections Inject New Urgency into Colorado River Negotiations with guests Kathryn Sorensen and Sarah Porter (September 19, 2025)Understanding Groundwater Risks in the Southwest with Jay Famiglietti (June 6, 2025)Checking in on Tense Colorado River Negotiations with Anne Castle and John Fleck (April 10, 2025)Episode CreditsTen Across Conversations Host: Duke ReiterAudio Production: Louie DuranResearch and support provided by: Kate Carefoot, Rae Ulrich, and Sabine Butler Lab Coat Optional is a production of the Strategic Marketing and Communications team at Arizona State University’s Knowledge Enterprise. Executive produced by Kate HowellsProduced by Alexander Chapin and Pete ZriokaHosted and reported by Pete ZriokaShot by Alexander ChapinEdited by Quinton Kendall and Alexander ChapinOriginal music from Patrick CheungMotion graphics by Andy RamosArt by Andy Keena and Sophia Franz

As artificial intelligence has grown globally, so has the construction of immense, resource-intensive data centers. The arrival of these projects-- both the facilities and the powerful tech companies behind them-- in communities throughout the U.S. has created some controversy. Ten Across cities like Tucson, El Paso and San Antonio have made headlines recently for community resistance to development deals that might strain local resources in exchange for uncertain or marginal economic benefits.  In the fourth and final installment in this series on the nexus of Texas water, energy, and growth, host Duke Reiter looks at what these stories can tell us about similar scenarios playing out in the Ten Across region and in the nation at large. He is joined by San Antonio District 6 Councilmember Ric Galvan and Robert Moore, founder of the nonprofit newsroom El Paso Matters, to discuss:  The importance of preventing “develop-by-right” policies and preferential treatment toward private industry from permitting data center developments at significant expense to local communitiesThe value of intentional partnership between local utilities and governments when evaluating resource-intensive land use proposalsWhat the AI boom may mean—for better and for worse—for the future of local economic development and job growth  Stay until the end of the episode for takeaways from the rest of the series and for the Interstate 10 corridor as a whole. Missed an episode? Get caught up on parts 1-3, linked below.Relevant Articles and Resources  “San Antonio looks to create tailor-made model for data center growth” (Community Impact, March 2026)“El Paso Electric filings detail power plant impact behind Meta’s $10 billion data center” (El Paso Matters, March 2026)  “’We can’t do this a lot’: El Paso Water CEO warns as questions grow over Meta data center’s water use” (El Paso Matters, December 2025)  “Podcast: We discuss Northeast El Paso data center, tax breaks for Meta, city’s economic future” (El Paso Matters, December 2025)  “Tucson City Council rejects Project Blue data center amid intense community pressure” (Arizona Luminaria, August 2025)  Local Data Center Development Guides Produced by Friends of Ten Across “The Data Center Next Door” (USC Annenberg Center for Climate Journalism and Communication, April 2026)  “Turning the data center boom into long-term, local prosperity” (Brookings, February 2026)  Relevant Ten Across Conversations Podcasts  Texas Series Trailer  Part One: Can Texas Drought-Proof Its Economic Miracle?  Part Two: Does Texas Have the Water Support an AI Boom?  Part Three: Oil Wars, Nuclear, and AI—Can Texas Power America’s Future?  CreditsHost: Duke ReiterWriter and producer: Taylor GriffithEditor: Kate CarefootResearch and support provided by: Rae Ulrich, Kelly Saunders, Maya Chari, and Sabine Butler  About our guestsRic Galvan represents District 6 on San Antonio’s City Council. Prior to that, he was a District 5 staff member and President of the Piper Meadow neighborhood association. At 25, he is among the youngest members ever elected to the council.   Robert Moore is the founder and CEO of El Paso Matters. He has been a journalist in the Texas Borderlands since 1986.