Virginia groundwater report puts eastern aquifers and data-center growth under scrutiny
A delayed Virginia Department of Environmental Quality analysis warns that groundwater supplies in eastern Virginia are constrained and projected to decline, putting future industrial development and public-water planning under scrutiny.
The report, required by a 2024 General Assembly law, says current conditions appear unlikely to support a reliable, sufficient groundwater supply for another large industrial user in the region. It recommends stronger state authority over withdrawal permits, requiring large applicants to consider surface water or reuse, better local planning and more staffing and monitoring.
The report does not ban data centers, impose a moratorium or cancel existing permits. Its recommendations would require action by the General Assembly, state regulators or both.
Withdrawals fell, then groundwater gains leveled off
Eastern Virginia’s groundwater withdrawals declined after a major industrial paper mill closed about 15 years ago. The report says stronger management and reduced withdrawals helped water levels improve in some areas.
That improvement later leveled off. The analysis says groundwater availability is constrained and current projections indicate that declines are likely to resume in the near future. Conditions vary by aquifer, location and depth, so the projection does not mean every well or community faces the same immediate risk.
WHRO reported that groundwater use in the coastal region could become unsustainable within the next five to 10 years without additional action. That is a regional projection, not a finding that all wells are currently failing or unsafe.
Why data centers are part of the policy debate
Data centers can use substantial amounts of water for cooling, but the report says comprehensive public information about their groundwater withdrawals is not available.
Most existing and planned data-center capacity in eastern Virginia is located in public-water service areas that mostly draw from surface water. The report does not conclude that all data centers use groundwater, and it does not establish the exact number of facilities that do.
The study instead examined a hypothetical large facility using evaporative cooling. Under current conditions, it found that such a facility — or another comparable industrial user — would be unlikely to find a reliable, sufficient groundwater supply anywhere in the region.
That finding could affect where future water-intensive projects are proposed and whether applicants must rely on surface water, reuse systems or other alternatives. It does not automatically stop construction or change permits already issued.
What the report recommends
The analysis calls for lawmakers to strengthen DEQ‘s authority to deny or condition groundwater withdrawal permits when a proposed use would be unsustainable. It also recommends requiring large applicants to evaluate surface-water sources and water reuse before seeking significant groundwater withdrawals.
Other recommendations include better local water-use planning, additional state employees and equipment, improved monitoring and clearer information about withdrawals from private wells and industrial facilities.
Those are proposals, not current requirements. The report does not give DEQ unlimited discretion to reject permits under existing law; rather, it says the agency’s current authority may be insufficient for the conditions identified in the analysis.
What residents and utilities could face
Private well owners are not subject to new household requirements because of the report. They could, however, be affected by future monitoring, permitting decisions and local water-management plans. WHRO reported that lawful, unpermitted withdrawals such as private drinking-water wells account for up to 40% of total groundwater withdrawals in eastern Virginia, according to the report.
Public utilities may need to plan for different water sources, expanded treatment or distribution infrastructure and additional monitoring as groundwater availability changes. Those decisions could bring costs for local governments, utilities and ratepayers, although the report does not establish a specific dollar amount.
Groundwater depletion also has broader consequences. In Hampton Roads, pumping contributes to land subsidence, which can worsen flooding as sea levels rise. On the Eastern Shore, communities rely heavily on the Yorktown-Eastover aquifer, and saltwater intrusion is a particular concern because alternative drinking-water sources are limited. These are regional risks identified in the reporting and analysis, not findings that a particular resident’s well or utility is currently unsafe.
Recharge projects help, but are not a complete answer
Hampton Roads’ Sustainable Water Initiative for Tomorrow, or SWIFT, treats wastewater to drinking-water standards and injects it into the Potomac aquifer. WHRO reported that the project passed one billion gallons of underground recharge in 2025.
The state analysis says the injections may produce localized increases in water levels, but those gains can dissipate rapidly when recharge stops. The report calls for better monitoring of recharge effects and evaluation of whether similar projects could work elsewhere.
SWIFT is therefore a long-term management tool, not an immediate replacement for stronger permitting, conservation and water-source planning.
What happens next
The report was due in January 2026 but was not released publicly for more than six months. The Associated Press obtained it after an open-records request and questions about the state’s refusal to release it. A spokesperson for Gov. Abigail Spanberger attributed the delay to a backlog of work from the previous administration.
Spanberger’s office said the governor intends to work with the General Assembly to evaluate the findings and strengthen Virginia’s groundwater-management policies. Some lawmakers have called for a special session, but no new statewide restriction or data-center prohibition follows from the report alone.
The next consequential steps would be legislation, formal regulations, permit changes, agency guidance or new funding for monitoring and water management. Until one of those actions occurs, the report remains an analysis and set of recommendations rather than enforceable new policy.
For residents, the report turns groundwater capacity into a statewide development and public-infrastructure question. The science identifies a narrowing margin in eastern Virginia; whether that leads to enforceable limits depends on what state officials do next.
Sources
- Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, Eastern Virginia Groundwater Resources Report
- Associated Press, Virginia study on groundwater, data centers calls for tighter water regulations
- WHRO, Hampton Roads' groundwater supply is under threat, new analysis shows
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