This story was produced by our colleagues at the BBC.

Beverly Morris bought a home in Mansfield, Georgia, in 2016, drawn by the peace, the trees, the seclusion. But all that changed when a massive Meta data center moved in next door.

Now she says she buys all her drinking water.

“No one should have to be afraid to drink their water, not in this day, not in this age. We should not have to be afraid to drink her water,” Morris said.

Ever since construction began, her water well has turned murky due to sediment that's from her taps, which Morris says wasn't there before.

Facebook's parent company Meta told us being a good neighbor is a priority, but that this had nothing to do with them. They commissioned a study which found that the company’s Data Center Operation did not adversely affect groundwater conditions in the area.

Still, Beverly isn't reassured.

“My everyday life, everything has been affected. I've lived through this for eight years. This is not just today, but it is affecting me from now on,” Morris said.

The AI boom has led to a spike in demand for data, and more data centers to handle all of it. These digital work horses use huge amounts of power and water to stay cool and discharge waste water in the process.

Gordon Rogers, executive director of Flint Riverkeeper, a non-profit advocacy group that monitors the health of Georgia's Flint River, and his colleague George show me one example of what's at stake — a damaged creek next to another data center, this one owned by QTS.

Clean water should not be a luxury for some Gordon tells me, but a right for all.

“A larger, wealthier property owner does not have more property rights than the smaller, less wealthy property owner. We do not live in a society with fiefdoms where there's a Lord of the Manor, and the Lord of the Manor gets to decide whose property rights are superior to others,” Gordon said.

And as these high tech hubs multiply, they are also putting a strain on local water supplies, a pressure that's unlikely to slow down anytime soon.

QTS says its data centers meet high environmental standards and bring millions in local tax revenue, but local activism threatens the U.S. boom, with $64 billion in projects delayed or blocked nationwide.

“Literally anything that you do today on your computer, your mobile devices, the apps you use, they're mostly powered by data centers,” said Rajiv Garg, professor at Georges Emory University specializing in cloud computing.

He says data centers bring jobs and revenue, but the challenge now is making them sustainable.

“We can recycle lot of the water that we get from the rain, from sewage, and we can use those to cool these data centers so we can optimize the resources that are being used,” Garg said.

And while Meta disputes that it has caused the problems with Beverly Morris’ water, there's no doubt the company has worn out its welcome as her neighbor.

“I can't sell my home. I would prefer not to live here now. This is my perfect spot before, but it isn't anymore,” Morris said.