TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — As the world’s largest semiconductor manufacturers get set to significantly increase their presence in Arizona, one of the worst droughts in decades in the American Southwest could affect future operations.

For the first time ever, U.S. government officials on Monday (Aug. 16) declared a water shortage for the Colorado River. Mandatory water cuts will begin in California, Nevada, and Arizona as well as in Mexico starting Jan. 1, 2022.

Arizona alone will see the amount of water it draws from the Colorado River drop by around 18%, or about 632 million cubic meters (512,000 acre-feet). For now, Arizona farmers will bear the brunt of the curbs, while water for Indigenous tribes, municipalities, and industry will be protected unless drought conditions worsen.

Both Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) and Intel have announced plans to either set up shop or expand existing facilities in Arizona. Chip manufacturing requires massive amounts of “ultra-pure” water in order to cool down equipment and wash silicon wafers, according to The Verge.

Factories used 6% of the state’s water in 2019, but with TSMC and Intel both planning new facilities, the fear is that number will grow. Intel announced in March that it plans to spend US$20 billion to construct two new fabs at its existing Chandler, Arizona, campus.

Intel already has its own water treatment plant at its Ocotillo campus in Chandler, and in 2020, the company said it had cleaned up and returned 95% of the freshwater it used. The Verge also cited Intel’s corporate responsibility report that said the company had used more than 19.68 million cubic meters (5.2 billion gallons) of Arizona water in 2020, with around 20% of it being reclaimed.

Meanwhile, TSMC announced in May 2020 that it would spend US$12 billion to build a 5 nm fab in Phoenix. The company told the outlet that for now, it does not expect water shortages to affect future operations in Arizona.

However, the reality is that water scarcity caused by climate change is expected to worsen in the coming years. This means that larger water cuts along the river are likely in the future as warmer temperatures continue to reduce the amount of water from rain and melting snow that flows into the Colorado.


●Origin：Taiwan News
●Link：https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4272952