Clean energy could power data centres and cut pollution by 2030

Streaming, cloud computing and artificial intelligence are fuelling rapid growth in data centres. That surge is also intensifying worries about higher energy demand and worsening pollution.

New research, however, indicates the digital economy does not need to expand at the environment’s expense. If data centres and online industries are supplied with cleaner electricity, both overall energy use and air pollution could fall, even while the economy keeps growing.

Greening data centre energy

The research team assessed three different economic trajectories through 2030. Of the options modelled, only the green digital route repeatedly delivered lower energy demand and cleaner air while still enabling faster economic growth.

In building a national outlook, Professor Songtao Huo of Henan University of Urban Construction illustrated how tying data expansion to a cleaner power supply changes emissions patterns and, in turn, public health outcomes.

On this green digital pathway, total energy use and pollution levels declined even as factories were modernised and digital services continued to scale.

Even with those improvements, outcomes ultimately hinged on what supplied electricity to the new infrastructure, leaving trade-offs that the wider analysis explored.

Energy demand drops sharply

Within the green scenario, total energy consumption rose to about 250 million tons of standard coal equivalent, a unit commonly used in China to measure overall energy use.

Although output kept increasing, more advanced digital services helped factories run more efficiently, and many firms moved equipment away from fuel combustion towards electrified operations.

By 2030, the model projected overall energy demand would be about 19.4 percent lower than under a business-as-usual trajectory.

Those reductions, though, relied on companies replacing or upgrading older plant and on utilities steadily expanding renewable generation as digital demand continued to increase.

Efficiency drives the energy savings

To link industries across the economy, the researchers applied a computable general equilibrium model, a whole-economy simulator that connects sectors through price changes.

Digital management tools allowed manufacturers to reduce excess inventory, improve freight routing and remove energy losses that can be buried in day-to-day processes.

At the same time, the growth of data centres and device production introduced additional energy demand, meaning the modelling weighed direct energy costs against indirect efficiency gains.

Because the net outcome can shift with relatively small differences in adoption rates, the pace of real-world deployment was a key factor.

Cleaner growth means cleaner air

By 2030, the cleaner growth pathway reduced average air pollution to about 22.36 micrograms per cubic meter, around 11.5 percent lower than in a scenario where nothing changes.

This fall is important because it lowers exposure to PM2.5-fine particles that can penetrate deep into the lungs and pass into the bloodstream.

Even at 22.36, pollution would still sit above the World Health Organization’s recommended annual limit for healthy air.

To reach safer levels, the analysis indicated it would also be necessary to cut smoke and exhaust from factories and vehicles, rather than relying only on cleaning up the electricity grid.

Turning health into dollars

Beneath the pollution figures, the model accounted for shorter lifespans and higher healthcare spending associated with long-term exposure to fine particulates.

A separate population module converted cleaner air into fewer premature deaths by reducing the number of people who develop severe lung and heart disease.

“The digital economy is the new engine of global expansion, but its true value lies in its potential to harmonize wealth with wellness,” said Huo.

When hospital admissions and early deaths are treated as tangible economic losses, the case for investing in clean energy becomes more practical.

Growth accelerates with clean energy

The projections also showed stronger growth under the cleaner pathway, with the economy expected to expand faster by 2030.

Lower energy wastage reduced operating costs for firms, and improved air quality helped curb health issues that can limit productivity and learning.

Rather than constraining the digital sector, the modelling suggested that smarter infrastructure could pull investment towards cleaner industries and services.

However, the benefits were not evenly distributed: some workers risk being left behind, and uneven regional burdens could trigger political resistance if the shift is not managed carefully.

Transition pressures workers and grids

The cleaner digital transition carries costs. Under the green scenario, the projections pointed to about 502,000 jobs lost by 2030, largely due to restructuring in heavy industry where automation and cleaner production reduce labour requirements.

New roles in the digital economy do not always emerge in the same places, which can leave particular communities facing disruption.

The modelling also estimated around 9.04 billion yuan (about $1.25 billion) in unemployment-related costs, alongside increased electronic waste as quicker device replacement puts pressure on recycling systems.

More robust retraining programmes, stronger recycling rules and local support measures could help to soften these impacts and maintain political stability during the transition.

Digital infrastructure also brings fresh energy demands. According to the International Energy Agency, data centres used about 1.5 percent of global electricity in 2024.

Servers operate continuously, and cooling adds further load. Because facilities often cluster geographically, local grids can experience sudden strain when new capacity is brought online.

Planning ahead for energy supply, grid reinforcement and efficiency requirements can help avoid expensive bottlenecks later.

Future of clean energy data centres

The analysis found that policy-not technology alone-determined whether digital growth reduced carbon emissions or merely shifted pollution elsewhere.

Mandating that new data centres secure clean power contracts and meet efficiency standards helped ensure that expansion of digital infrastructure did not increase pollution.

The results also suggested targeted subsidies for cleaner equipment and better recycling outperform broad tax breaks that simply accelerate production.

Monitoring air quality and health effects alongside job creation can also keep future digital policy centred on people, rather than profits alone.

These decisions define a narrow window ahead. When digital expansion is matched with clean electricity, economic benefits can coincide with healthier air rather than forcing a trade-off.

Ultimately, improved data, more granular regional analysis and sustained real-world policy follow-through will decide whether the projected benefits are achieved by 2030.