Artificial intelligence has become increasingly integrated into various industries and aspects of life, including the environment, education and local business. 

Boulder is no exception.  

As AI adoption grows across the city, it faces a balancing act between embracing the technology’s potential and managing its environmental costs.  

People have raised concerns about data centers’ water consumption and energy use, but that has not stopped the University of Colorado Boulder and the city’s government from exploring ways to incorporate AI into education, research and public services. 

These competing priorities raise a broader question for Boulder: How can the community benefit from AI while staying committed to its climate goals and addressing concerns about how the technology is used? 

Data centers v. climate goals

A growing tension is the environmental impact created by AI data centers and infrastructure. Large-scale data centers consume 5 million gallons of water per day, which is equivalent to the water use of a town populated by 10,000 to 50,000 people. 

 That amount of water is significant for a town like Boulder, which is home to approximately over 100,000 people. 

Boulder County commissioners unanimously implemented a temporary six-month moratorium starting in June 2026 to halt the acceptance and processing of planning applications for data centers in unincorporated areas.  

These environmentally focused initiatives have created tension within AI industries by restricting where the infrastructure can grow.  

In the 2026 legislative session, House Bill 26-1030 would have offered qualifying data centers a 100% exemption from state sales and use taxes. It also would have required AI companies to invest at least $250 million in each data center built, offer employees wages that are at least 110% of the country average, use waterless cooling technology and transition entirely to renewable energy.  The bill died near the end of the session.

Another bill in the Senate, SB26-102, which was also killed near the end of the 2026 session, would have required new data centers to obtain their electricity from newly developed renewable energy sources, rather than relying on existing renewable energy supplies.

As AI infrastructures expand, the environmental impact raises questions about how they fit into Boulder’s sustainability goals, including reaching net zero by 2035.  

Josh Radoff, director of campus climate action, sustainability and resilience at CU Boulder, believes that AI doesn’t have to be bad for our environment.

“AI is an electrical load, so making electricity from clean sources is totally possible,” Radoff said. “So, it’s certainly possible that AI can fuel the transition we want to see from fossil fuels on the grid to renewables.”

Currently, Boulder powers data centers with a combination of renewable energy and fossil fuels; the city’s goal is to be 100% renewable.  

According to the city of Boulder, its goal reflects its desire to address climate change and environmental issues that have become prominent in the age of AI.  

Boulder’s 2024 Greenhouse Gas Inventory show that the efforts to decrease emissions are paying off.  

In 2024, Boulder’s total emissions were 1,115,543.00 metric tons of carbon dioxide, down 29% since 2018.  

While their efforts to reduce emissions are paying off, with the new technology becoming more embedded in everyday life, maintaining this progress may prove to be difficult.  

To stay on track, Boulder recently updated its climate action plan, hoping to reduce emissions to 70% below the 2018 levels.  

The city’s efforts such as preparing the community for climate risks, transitioning to clean and affordable energy and expanding transportation options are important in an era where the usage of AI is only increasing, especially in the classroom. 

Universities and AI

Colleges and universities have played a large role in the increasing number of people using AI with students turning to tools such as ChatGPT for researching, writing and studying.  

About 57% of college students use AI tools weekly, according to a recent Gallup poll, and about 20% use it daily, including CU Boulder student Sophia Bandi. 

“AI has been an extremely helpful tool to me during my time in college,” said Bandi, a college senior. “I use it, and I know most of my friends do too. I think it’s probably rarer to find someone who doesn’t.” 

Bandi is among the many students at CU Boulder who were just provided with a free subscription to ChatGPT through the university. 

In February 2026, the University of Colorado paid $2 million to allow students across all of its campuses to use the platform as a way to integrate AI into curriculum rather than fight it.  

CU’s student government, on the other hand, did fight it. They called for restructuring the implementation of OpenAI at CU.  

Many students and faculty members, including senior Mackenzie O’Dell, backed the student government with concerns regarding data privacy, academic integrity, student input and AI governance.  

“I think AI is making it harder in the classroom. I want to be able to learn, but I’m put at a disadvantage if all of my peers are using AI and I’m not,” O’Dell said, “I understand there’s no way around it but it should be monitored more closely.”  

O’Dell was not alone in that belief, with over 700 students signing a petition in March 2026 to get CU to reconsider the deal. 

But access to AI in the classroom does not end there.  

The university launched the U.S. National Science Foundation National AI Institute for Student-AI Teaming  with the goal to integrate AI into the classroom in an effective and engaging way. 

As part of a $100 million investment by the federal government towards AI development, the National Science Foundation just renewed funding for five years towards the foundation.  

Alongside the classroom, Boulder is one of 10 cities participating in an initiative to explore the use of AI to improve local governments.  

They recently invested $3 million in this initiative, which is meant to help develop policies, improve city services and understand and evaluate new technologies.  

The goal is to improve access to information, respond quickly and efficiently to community-related questions and streamline operations. 

As AI becomes increasingly embedded in Boulder’s classrooms, businesses and local government, the city’s sustainability goals will depend not only on how the technology is used, but also on how its energy demands, risks and benefits are managed.