Greg Hilburn, Shreveport Times
Louisiana lawmakers have advanced a bill that urges the state Department of Conservation and Energy to study the impact of the Amazon data center's water usage from Caddo Lake.
House Resolution 20 by Republican Oil City Rep. Danny McCormick comes from concerns about Amazon's plan to withdraw water from the lake to cool the $12 billion artificial intelligence data center's servers and IT infrastructure.
The resolution, which cleared the House Natural Resources Committee without objection, generated a broader conversation on the panel about data centers' water usage throughout Louisiana.
In addition to the Amazon project in Caddo-Bossier, construction is under way on a $27 billion Meta data center in Richland Parish and a $10 billion Hut 8 data center near St. Francisville.
"Residents are concerned about water usage," said McCormick, who said Caddo Lake is already a resource for municipalities and industries.
Amazon invests $12 billion in Louisiana AI data center in Caddo-Bossier on Feb. 23, 2026.
Monique Edwards, director of the water administration division of the Department of Conservation and Energy, said demand for Louisiana's water resources, both on surface bodies and underwater aquifers, continues to increase.
The agency was tasked in 2025 with crafting a comprehensive plan for managing the state's water resources, but Edwards emphasized the department has no authority to stop any usage.
"Louisiana is perceived as a water rich state, but there are threats," Edwards said.
Neither McCormick nor Edwards said the Amazon data center is a threat to Caddo Lake, "but we're asking for a study (to determine the impact)," McCormick said.
Protestors spoke out at the Blanchard community meeting Tuesday over Amazon's planned AI data center.
"There is nothing in existence to regulate surface water withdrawals," Edwards said. "(The agency) needs additional authority to (manage) groundwater withdrawals. The state has no power to prevent the taking of surface water at this time."
Committee Chair Republican Brett Geymann of Lake Charles and Republican Houma Rep. Jessica Domangue asked Edwards to return to present more information about data centers and their water usage.
"We see and hear things all the time on social media that aren't necessarily facts," Domangue said. "It's important for us to understand what's happening in these (data center) facilities."