[missedthecue]

Interesting that both Intel and TSMC chose AZ. Isn't chip manufacturing very water intensive? Other states like say Michigan have more water than they know what to do with, between their giant aquifers, great lakes, and 1 meter of annual rainfall.

[wahern]

> Arizona has high interest because it has the five key factors for semiconductor fabs – available land, infrastructure (power, water, etc.), skilled talent, no natural disasters, and favorable tax incentives.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tiriasresearch/2021/03/23/arizo...

Not sure if the author is simply reciting received wisdom of dubious accuracy. Perhaps some of those things are far more important than others--e.g. pre-existing talent and tax incentives.

Or maybe our assumptions are wrong. Last month I made a similar point as yours regarding water and nuclear power plants in Nevada, to which someone replied noting the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station in Arizona, the largest power plant in the United States, which sources its water from sewage. See https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26176034 and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palo_Verde_Nuclear_Generating_... In addition to providing an example of water utilization, I imagine the cheap power produced by Palo Verde probably also figures into siting preferences.

[mech422]

I actually think the 'no natural disasters' thing is good for IT... Why put a DR site someplace an earthquake or tornado could take it out?