Internal documents from Amazon Web Services (AWS), reviewed by NewsTrackerToday, reveal that the world’s largest cloud provider has been underreporting the actual water consumption of its data centers. These findings call into question the transparency of corporate reporting and the real scale of the company’s sustainability program.
According to sources, a 2021 AWS internal memo instructed staff to account only for the portion of water used directly for server cooling. Water used in electricity generation for the data centers was excluded from the calculations. Internal estimates indicated that Amazon’s total water footprint at that time reached 105 billion gallons (approximately 397 billion liters), comparable to the annual water consumption of nearly one million American households.
Sophie Leclerc, a technology sector commentator at NewsTrackerToday, noted that these figures highlight the systemic dependence of digital infrastructure on limited natural resources and raise doubts about the transparency with which Amazon discloses its water consumption metrics.
The documents indicate that AWS management feared that publishing the full statistics would set an “irreversible precedent” and provoke negative reactions from investors and regulators. Consequently, when launching the Water Positive program in 2022, the company adopted a more “conservative” methodology: accounting for only 7.7 billion gallons of direct water use per year, with a stated goal of reducing it to 4.9 billion gallons by 2030. This approach helped create a favorable public image while leaving the majority of environmental impact unreported.
Risks are further amplified as Amazon continues to expand AWS infrastructure in regions with limited water resources. In Zaragoza, Spain, the company was granted permission to use 755,000 cubic meters of water per year for new data centers. Experts warn that such decisions carry strategic and social consequences, especially given the growing scarcity of freshwater in Southern Europe and the southwestern United States.
Amazon spokesperson Margaret Callahan described the leaked document as “outdated” and stated that it does not reflect the company’s current policy. According to her, Amazon invests in green technologies, uses recycled water, and implements more efficient cooling solutions across dozens of data centers. However, the internal materials reviewed by NewsTrackerToday confirm that concern over reputation was the key factor behind the decision not to report comprehensively.
Independent environmental organizations estimate that up to 90% of Amazon’s total water footprint is associated with indirect operations, such as equipment production, logistics, and supply chains. Excluding these categories from reporting violates ESG transparency principles and creates a misleading impression of the company’s progress in sustainability.
In 2024, Amazon reported achieving 53% of its Water Positive program. However, a significant portion of water replenishment projects occurs as part of mandatory regulatory compliance or is directly tied to supporting AWS operations, making these initiatives more a tool for maintaining the business model than a genuine environmental strategy.
Amazon collaborates with Nature Conservancy, the World Resources Institute, and the consulting firm LimnoTech to refine its methodology for assessing water impact. Nevertheless, former employees assert that the focus remains on managing perception rather than systematically reducing water use.
As News Tracker Today analysts emphasize, the growth of AI infrastructure and the rapid expansion of AWS cloud services make water use not just an environmental issue but a strategic one. In the context of tightening corporate reporting requirements and increasing investor attention to ESG metrics, technology companies can no longer rely on partial data.
From NewsTrackerToday perspective, Amazon is at a critical juncture: the company could set an example of transparency in environmental reporting by implementing independent verification of its data and accounting for all categories of water use. Otherwise, reputational risks and investor distrust are likely to increase. Genuine sustainability requires full measurement of impact rather than press releases; Amazon has the resources to lead in this process, but transparency remains the key challenge.
