Flagship evidence ledger · Water

Microsoft Quincy: a documented benefit with important limits.

EPA’s case study documents the reuse utility operating as of its reporting period and estimates 138 million gallons of annual potable-water savings. It is not a zero-water system, and that figure is not total campus consumption.

Operator: MicrosoftPlace: Quincy, WashingtonSource period: operating from 2021; EPA record reviewed in 2026Last checked: 10 September 2026
30 yearsCity–Microsoft finance and operating agreement
$31MCapital cost financed by Microsoft, per EPA
138M gal/yrEstimated potable-water savings, not consumption
Bottom lineEPA documents a city-owned, closed-loop treatment system that recirculates Microsoft cooling water and began operating on June 30, 2021. The system reduces potable-groundwater reliance, but water still evaporates during cooling and make-up water is required.

Claims

A verdict applies only to the wording shown.

Company claims are shown as stated; they are not findings.

Cooling + water · WA · microsoft-quincy

Sources re-read on 12 September 2026 (software-assisted second check, not an outside audit)

Supported as of EPA observations spanning operation from 2021, 2022 connection status and early-2023 context

Said by US EPA case study (government) in US EPA case study.

Checked 12 September 2026

EPA documents an operating water-reuse system serving Microsoft's Quincy campus.

What the evidence supports

EPA documents operation beginning June 30, 2021 and describes a city-operated treatment and recirculation system serving Microsoft's campus. EPA estimates 138 million gallons per year of potable-water savings, reports about 260 million gallons per year of canal-water makeup and says potable groundwater supplies about 5% of annual makeup. These are different measures and are not additive total consumption or a current meter audit.

Still unknown

Current measured withdrawal, consumption and discharge; a reconciled explanation of Microsoft's separate 380-million-gallon estimate; and operating changes after EPA's dated observations.

Confidence: high — government case study · 1 sources

US EPA case study → Gov. record

Open full claim → History (1) →

History

Correction · 12 September 2026 · Software-assisted second check

microsoft-quincy → Cooling + water

Field Cooling + water

From Microsoft Quincy: Supported as delivered; combined measures and a 2021-2022 observation window

To EPA documents an operating reuse system; distinct estimates and dated observations are separated

Why The second review separated estimated savings, canal makeup and potable makeup share and removed an unsupported original-publication year.

Evidence No additional evidence link; see the linked record or claim.

Cooling and water classification

Architecture: evaporative heat rejection with cooling water cycled four to five times, followed by municipal treatment and recirculation. “Closed loop” describes the industrial wastewater circuit; it does not mean no evaporation.

Sources: recycled cooling water, Columbia Basin Project canal water for much of the make-up volume, and a small potable-groundwater share. Brine is concentrated in lined evaporation ponds.

Primary sources

Data + actions

Suggest a correction → Record ID microsoft-quincy and the page are prefilled. Accepted material corrections appear on Changes.