Sierra Club analysis: Surge in US AI computing power could lead to a 42% increase in carbon emissions in the power industry within 5 years

Sierra Club analysis shows that building new fossil energy infrastructure to meet data center power demands could increase U.S. power industry carbon emissions by 42% by 2030 compared to 2025, offsetting 15 years of emission reduction achievements; if all planned AI computing projects are implemented, carbon dioxide emissions from power generation by the end of 2030 will increase by 618 million tons.