At AWS re:Invent, the cloud service provider announced that it will be water positive (water+) by 2030, which means the company would return more water to communities than it uses in its direct operations. 

AWS has been driving four key strategies in the pursuit of becoming water+ by 2030 — improving water efficiency, using sustainable water sources, returning water for community reuse, and supporting water replenishment projects. 

In India, AWS continues to support water replenishment projects with nonprofit WaterAid that include rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, and piped water installations in communities in Andhra Pradesh and Hyderabad, Telangana. 

This collaboration has resulted in nearly 650 million liters of water provided annually to communities and schools through 420 water point installations, 126 rainwater harvesting projects, and 120 groundwater recharge structures.

WaterAid also directly engaged more than 30,000 community members through a water conservation education campaign, teaching residents practical ways to conserve clean water, use rainwater harvesting, and conduct water audits. Together, the water supply, replenishment and conservation initiatives have now benefited more than 75,000 people across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. 

“Water scarcity is a major issue around the world and with today’s water positive announcement we are committing to do our part to help solve this rapidly growing challenge,” said Adam Selipsky, CEO of AWS. 

“In just a few years, half the world’s population is projected to live in water-stressed areas. So, to ensure people have access to water, we all need to innovate new ways to help conserve and reuse this precious resource. We are committed to leading on water stewardship in our cloud operations, and returning more water than we use in the communities where we operate.  We know this is the right thing to do for the environment and our customers.”

AWS’ recent announcement adds to Amazon’s commitment of $10 million to Water.org to support the launch of the Water & Climate Fund, which will deliver climate-resilient water and sanitation solutions to 100 million people across Asia, Africa, and Latin America. This donation will directly empower 1 million people with water access by 2025, providing 3 billion liters of water each year to people in water scarce areas.

“Our work with Amazon is supported by the shared belief that solving the global water crisis is possible. We commend AWS for committing to return more water than it uses by announcing to be Water+ by 2030,” said Matt Damon, co-founder of Water.org. Gary White, Water.org CEO and co-founder, added, “Our collaboration with Amazon and AWS already brings over 805 million litres of safe water to communities around the world every year, and we are excited to continue to work with Amazon to bring even more safe water to families in need.”

 AWS will report annually on new innovations in water efficiency, community reuse, water replenishment projects, and other activities on its path to achieving its water+ commitment.