Amazon's secretive approach to its massive water usage has been laid bare in a leaked internal document, revealing the tech giant's efforts to downplay the true extent of its datacentre's water consumption.
The company, which operates hundreds of active facilities and is planning a significant increase in capacity as part of its push into artificial intelligence, has faced criticism for its lack of transparency on this issue. In contrast, competitors Microsoft and Google regularly publish figures for their water consumption.
A leaked memo shows that Amazon's cloud computing division chose to account for only a smaller water usage figure when designing a campaign for water efficiency, with the aim of minimising reputational risk. This approach involves calculating progress towards internal targets based on primary use only - 7.7 billion gallons per year - rather than including secondary use.
Secondary use refers to water used in generating electricity to power datacentres, and it is estimated that this figure could double the size and budget of the company's Water Positive campaign if included. Scientists have expressed concerns about the selective disclosure of this information, saying that it does not accurately capture the true water cost of datacentres.
Amazon has defended its approach, citing efficiency savings achieved through water-efficient measures, but experts argue that the company is "obfuscating" its water footprint by only reporting on primary use. The company's efforts to create industry standards for quantifying the benefit of watershed restoration projects have also been seen as an attempt to downplay its water usage.
In a move that has been described as hypocritical, Amazon is investing heavily in sustainability initiatives while continuing to keep its overall water consumption confidential. The company's Water Positive campaign only applies to AWS, and the wider Amazon group - including its online retail business - has a significantly higher water consumption of 105 billion gallons per year.
As the tech industry continues to ride the wave of AI investment and pursue greater heights of computational power, concerns about the environmental impact of these operations are growing. With Amazon's vast resources and influence, its secretive approach to its water usage is a major concern for experts and environmentalists alike.
The company, which operates hundreds of active facilities and is planning a significant increase in capacity as part of its push into artificial intelligence, has faced criticism for its lack of transparency on this issue. In contrast, competitors Microsoft and Google regularly publish figures for their water consumption.
A leaked memo shows that Amazon's cloud computing division chose to account for only a smaller water usage figure when designing a campaign for water efficiency, with the aim of minimising reputational risk. This approach involves calculating progress towards internal targets based on primary use only - 7.7 billion gallons per year - rather than including secondary use.
Secondary use refers to water used in generating electricity to power datacentres, and it is estimated that this figure could double the size and budget of the company's Water Positive campaign if included. Scientists have expressed concerns about the selective disclosure of this information, saying that it does not accurately capture the true water cost of datacentres.
Amazon has defended its approach, citing efficiency savings achieved through water-efficient measures, but experts argue that the company is "obfuscating" its water footprint by only reporting on primary use. The company's efforts to create industry standards for quantifying the benefit of watershed restoration projects have also been seen as an attempt to downplay its water usage.
In a move that has been described as hypocritical, Amazon is investing heavily in sustainability initiatives while continuing to keep its overall water consumption confidential. The company's Water Positive campaign only applies to AWS, and the wider Amazon group - including its online retail business - has a significantly higher water consumption of 105 billion gallons per year.
As the tech industry continues to ride the wave of AI investment and pursue greater heights of computational power, concerns about the environmental impact of these operations are growing. With Amazon's vast resources and influence, its secretive approach to its water usage is a major concern for experts and environmentalists alike.
i swear it's like the avocado hates me lol anyway back to amazon... i mean what even is the point of having all that water if we're just gonna ignore it for the sake of a good rep? 
it's like, be transparent or don't bother trying to save water 
. But what about all that secondary use energy to power those datacenters? That's a whole other story 
. It's like they're playing a game of "greenwashing" – trying to make themselves look good while keeping their true water footprint hidden behind closed doors 
. And it's not just this one thing, it's the whole approach to reporting water usage. They're setting these internal targets and only counting progress towards them, which is kinda like counting how many trees you've planted in your backyard instead of actually measuring the environmental impact 
. It's frustrating because we know the tech industry is all about growth and innovation, but at what cost?
. Like, what's the point of having a "Water Positive" campaign if you're not gonna be transparent about how much water you're actually using? And it's so shady that they're calculating their progress based on primary use only... like, what about all the secondary use? That's gotta count for something 
Amazon's been pretty shady about their water usage... like they're hiding something 
. If you think about it, all those datacentres using tons of water just to power computers doesn't exactly scream "eco-friendly" 
. And now this leaked doc shows that Amazon's only reporting on the tiny fraction that actually goes towards, you know, actual usage - not even counting the electricity needed to run everything! 
It's like they're trying to spin their environmental efforts in a good light while keeping the real numbers under wraps. 
The more I learn about big corps like Amazon, the more I'm worried about the planet 
. And they're also downplaying the real impact of their datacentres on the environment 
. Microsoft and Google are at least being honest about their water consumption, but not Amazon... it's like they're trying to hide something 
. I mean, can you imagine if every big corp did this? We'd be in way over our heads with climate change 
. It's time for some transparency, please 
!
