Meta’s AI Campus Contaminated Cheyenne’s Water, City Says
Skip to content
Toggle Navigation
News
- Events
- TNW Conference
- June 19 & 20, 2025
- All events
- TNW Conference
- Newsletters
- Partner with us
- Jobs
- Contact
Latest
- Deep tech
- Sustainability
- Ecosystems
- Data and security
- Fintech and ecommerce
- Future of work
- Conference media hub
More
- Startups and technology
- Investors and funding
- Government and policy
- Corporates and innovation
- Podcast
- Artificial Intelligence
Meta’s AI campus flushed a rare bacterium into Cheyenne’s water. The city hit back.
A Meta contractor flushed a rare, potentially deadly bacterium (Cupriavidus gilardii) into Cheyenne’s wastewater system. The Wyoming city has now suspended all data centre discharge, marking a fresh flashpoint in the debate over AI’s water consumption.
July 8, 2026 – 6:30 pm
Image by: Meta
A Meta contractor flushed a rare bacterium into Cheyenne’s wastewater system. The Wyoming city has suspended all data centre discharge.
Officials in Cheyenne, Wyoming, have halted acceptance of industrial wastewater from data centres following the incident. This occurred when a contractor building Meta’s new AI campus discharged water containing the rare and multidrug-resistant pathogen into the city’s reuse system, which is used for irrigating parks and golf courses. Thankfully, it did not enter the drinking supply.
The Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities identified Goat Systems, a Meta contractor, as the source. The company’s discharge contained Cupriavidus gilardii, which was first spotted in February during routine testing. Tracing its origin took months. As Frank Strong from the utilities board noted to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle, "This isn’t something we normally test for."
A rare bug in the pipes
Lab staff discovered the bacterium through routine testing, which took several months to trace. A review estimated a 31% mortality rate across 32 known cases since 2009.
The board revoked Goat Systems’ discharge privileges in March and subsequently suspended all data centre fill-and-flush and closed-loop discharge in June to prevent recurrence.
Meta points to its contractor
Meta claims it’s working with general contractor Fortis to resolve the issue. A Meta spokesperson explained to Business Insider that when the board notified them of the substance in the city’s wastewater, not drinking water, Fortis immediately stopped discharging industrial wastewater and began hauling it offsite. Fortis conducted its own tests and denied finding any trace of the substance.
The $800 million campus, initially known as Project Cosmo, spans nearly 800,000 square feet south of Cheyenne. Meta announced it in 2024, emphasizing its goal to be "water-positive" by 2030, aiming to restore more water than it consumes.
Why it matters
The clean-up required significant effort. The board drained and disinfected the entire reuse system and temporarily switched affected irrigation to drinking water. As Pete Laybourn, a Cheyenne city councilman, expressed, "It’s a very, very unpleasant surprise."
This incident reflects a broader trend as residents across locations confront new sites over rising power bills, noise, and environmental concerns. They actively participate in planning meetings and pressure lawmakers for change.