Nature-based solutions take the lead at data centre water projects
- Seb Hancox
- Jan 8
- 3 min read
With 2030 water-positive targets fast approaching, major data centre operators are looking to nature-based solutions to meet their replenishment needs.
The world’s leading data centres are leaning heavily on nature-based solutions to offset their substantial water footprints and reach 2030 water positive goals, according to GWI’s latest analysis. Four major operators (Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services and Meta) have released full water replenishment project portfolios, comprising a total of 265 projects worldwide. Over 40% of these utilise nature-based solutions to achieve volumetric benefits.
The interventions used range from installing beaver dam analogues to restoring habitats with prescribed burns. Of the 118 nature-based projects listed, 69% focus on wetland management or restoration, while 35% entail forest management and land conservation. A small proportion targets both areas.
Other notable categories include projects targeting water infrastructure, efficiency and reuse (22%), and agricultural best management practices (16%). Projects focused on environmental flows and water rights (7%), and rainwater harvesting (6%) have attracted the least investment.
The US is a hotspot for both data centres and replenishment efforts, home to around 330 data centres between the four companies, and around 160 replenishment projects. Over 60% of replenishment projects in the US are located in areas of high to extremely high water stress.
Water replenishment locations versus data centre hotspots (US)
Replenishment projects span the US, extending beyond just the watersheds in which data centres are located. Water-stressed California stands out as a hub for replenishment efforts, despite its limited concentration of data centres.
Several projects implement smart technologies, with around 6% using AI-based solutions, primarily to improve efficiency and loss reduction. Of the solution providers involved in these projects, FIDO Tech’s leak detection and N-Drip irrigation technologies feature most frequently, while the US-based Bonneville Environmental Foundation emerged as the primary implementation partner, supporting 31 projects across all four companies. The foundation connects local stakeholders for water projects and provides water restoration certificates for companies looking to offset their consumption.
All four companies have water positive targets for 2030. Google leads the pack with 112 projects replenishing 4.5 billion US gallons in 2024, but also reports the highest total water consumption at 8.1 billion US gallons in 2024. The company aims to replenish 120% of water consumption across offices and data centres by 2030.
Microsoft has 76 projects in its portfolio, but has not disclosed volumetric benefits achieved in 2024 alone. The company faces less of a challenge to meet its water positive target, however, consuming just 1.5 billion US gallons across its global operations in 2024. Meta and AWS follow, with 42 projects replenishing 1.59 billion US gallons and 35 projects replenishing 1.13 billion US gallons in 2024, respectively, though neither has disclosed their water consumption for 2024.
Data centre water consumption has risen sharply since 2023, attracting growing public scrutiny. With larger hyperscale datacentres seeing diminishing on-site water efficiency gains, beyond-the-fenceline replenishment projects offer a more scalable approach to offset water impacts and help maintain operators’ social licence to operate. For operators seeking to minimise energy usage by relying on water-based cooling techniques, replenishment also provides a means to offset higher consumption volumes.
Data was collected from Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Meta’s most recent public water replenishment portfolio documents. Projects were categorised by their primary physical mechanism and hydrological outcome, incorporating companies’ own categorisations and potential co-benefits.
Category descriptions
Nature-based solutions: Projects that use ecological or landscape-based processes to restore or enhance hydrological function, such as wetland restoration, reforestation, or riparian habitat improvement. These interventions rely on nature-driven mechanisms rather than engineered infrastructure.
Water infrastructure, efficiency & reuse: Projects that improve the performance and efficiency or create water systems, such as pipes, treatment systems, and reuse schemes, to reduce losses or increase available water. These interventions rely primarily on engineered infrastructure rather than agricultural or ecological systems.
Agricultural best management practices: Projects that reduce water demand in agriculture through improved irrigation technologies, soil and crop management, or farmer practices that enhance water-use efficiency.
Groundwater recharge: Projects that increase groundwater levels by capturing surface water, stormwater, or return flows and directing them into the ground.
WASH: Projects that increase access to safe and reliable drinking water or basic sanitation and hygiene.
Environmental flows & water rights: Projects that secure, lease, retire, or reallocate water rights or legal entitlements. The core mechanism is legal conservation/reallocation of water, rather than physical restoration or infrastructure.
Rainwater harvesting: Projects that capture and store rainfall from roofs, landscapes, or surface systems for later beneficial use or infiltration. Not including stormwater.
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