Amazon said on October 2 that it would invest more than US$1 billion over five years in communities in the US with its data centers, as it faces criticism over the facilities’ power and water use.

Amazon Web Services said the funding would support education, job training, energy affordability, and water and energy conservation in places where it operates data centers or is expanding them, including Indiana, Louisiana, North Carolina, Virginia, and Mississippi.

The company said it aimed to become water positive by 2030, meaning it planned to return more water to communities than its direct operations use.

AWS said it was 75% of the way toward that goal.

The announcement came as opposition to data center development broadened.

Amazon said more than 100 data center moratoriums were being considered across the US, while multiple states were considering restrictions, and local governments were using pauses while drafting longer-term rules.

🔗 Source: Reuters

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