Green Cloud Hosting in Phoenix: How Local Providers are Reducing Their Footprint

“Going green” has been a growing trend across industries. Now, the ‘go green’ theme is taking on the world of cloud hosting.

Specifically, the Greater Phoenix area has become a major hub for data centers and cloud infrastructure, driven by its favorable climate, land availability, utility incentives, and proximity to both West Coast and southwestern markets. However, such rapid growth carries environmental costs: high electrical usage, water consumption (especially for cooling), and infrastructure strain. 

In response, local cloud hosting providers and data center operators are implementing sustainable strategies: designing more efficient facilities, using renewable energy, reducing water usage, and integrating smarter operations. 

This blog will explore: 

• How green cloud hosting is taking root in Phoenix
• Key strategies
• How providers minimize their environmental footprints while still scaling to meet demand

The Landscape of Cloud and Data Center Growth in Phoenix

Arizona, particularly the Phoenix metropolitan area, has become one of North America's fastest-growing data center markets. Large-scale projects from hyperscale providers, colocation operations, and cloud-hosting firms are adding capacity; for instance, developments like Prime’s multi-building, high-capacity campus in Avondale are designed from the outset for sustainability.

The regulatory and planning environment is also adapting: zoning changes, new codes, and policy updates are being considered or enacted to account for health, safety, power demand, environmental impact, and resource usage associated with data center growth. 

Key Strategies Local Providers Use to Reduce Environmental Footprint

Renewable Energy Procurement and On-Site Green Power

• Many data centers in Phoenix are securing 100% renewable power through purchasing agreements or offsets. For example, Iron Mountain's AZP-2 facility is powered by 100% renewable energy. 
• STACK Infrastructure’s upcoming Phoenix campus is designed to run on 100% renewable energy as well. 
• Providers benefit from broader renewable power projects in Arizona, such as large solar farms, which feed into the grids serving data centers. 

Water Conservation and Efficient Cooling Systems

• Because Phoenix is arid, water usage is a major concern. New facilities are using designs and technology to reduce the water needed for cooling drastically, or in some cases, eliminating water-based cooling. 
• Prime’s Avondale campus, for instance, uses closed-loop cooling systems that save millions of gallons of water compared to traditional evaporative cooling. 
• Aligned Data Centers has also applied water-efficient or waterless cooling systems in some of their newer builds. 

Energy Efficiency, Modularity & Infrastructure Design

• Providers are optimizing their infrastructure with high-density racks, better server utilization (e.g., virtualization), modular components, and improved cooling technologies. This boosts the data centers' power usage effectiveness (PUE) and lowers waste. 
• Green building certifications and standards are being pursued. For instance, Aligned’s Phoenix data center PHX-06 earned Three Green Globes® Certification for its design, indicating achievements in resource efficiency and environmental impact reduction. 

Operational Strategies & Local Policy Support

• Cloud operators optimize server loads, shift non-critical tasks to off-peak hours, and scale only what is needed to avoid idle compute and power waste. While details vary, these are increasingly part of the conversation in the region. (Many providers don’t publicly detail all of these operational practices, but the incentives and design architectures support them.)
• Local policy changes, such as refined zoning ordinances to include requirements for data center projects to assess environmental impact, health and safety, and energy/water usage, are helping ensure new growth aligns with sustainability goals. 

Challenges and Trade-Offs

• Water scarcity: Phoenix is in a semi-desert region. Even with reduced-water cooling, the competition for limited water supplies remains intense. Providers must balance water usage with conservation goals and government regulation.
• Electricity grid capacity and renewable energy availability: Procuring renewable energy can be challenging depending on grid infrastructure, timing, and local utility policies. Sometimes, renewable energy is available via offsets rather than direct generation, which has its own limitations.
• Cost and complexity of green technologies: Technologies like advanced cooling, waterless heat rejection, energy storage, and renewable contracts can add up in terms of capital requirements and operational complexity. Not all providers (especially smaller ones) may have the capital to invest heavily.
• Growth vs. sustainability tension: Demand for cloud services (AI, big data, streaming, etc.) continues to surge. Meeting demand sometimes pushes providers toward high-power-density deployments that are harder to cool efficiently or that stress local resources unless carefully managed.

Case Studies: Local Green Hosting and Data Center Initiatives

• Aligned Data Centers, PHX-06: Earned a Green Globes certification, notable for its efficient design, renewable energy sourcing, and reduced water usage. 
• Iron Mountain AZP-2: Powered entirely by renewable energy, it offers large-scale colocation and cloud interconnectivity, and emphasizes efficient infrastructure. 
• Prime’s Avondale Campus: Designed for sustainability from the start, incorporating closed-loop cooling (which significantly reduces water usage), high-density compute capability, and renewable energy sourcing. 

The Future of Going Green in Phoenix

As cloud demand continues to grow in Phoenix, local providers are increasingly stepping up with innovations that reduce environmental impacts. Through renewable energy sourcing, water-efficient cooling, advanced infrastructure design, and more thoughtful operational practices, the region is working to decouple digital growth from carbon and resource waste. 

The truth is, the challenges are complex: balancing cost, scalability, and natural resource availability constraints. However, the case studies show that sustainable hosting is possible and increasingly expected. As policies evolve and green technologies become more accessible, Phoenix may serve as a model for how desert and semi-arid regions can host cloud infrastructure without sacrificing environmental integrity.

Ready to explore green cloud hosting options?

With a stronghold in the Phoenix market, PK Tech is prepared to help your business move towards more sustainable solutions, all with your bottom line in mind. Schedule a complimentary consultation with our team here.