17 November 2025, London, UK - Amazon is launching a new floodplain restoration project on the River Pang in the Thames River Basin that is expected to replenish over 200 million litres of water each year once completed, while creating a biodiversity sanctuary for many threatened species.
Working with The Rivers Trust, the project will remove barriers to reconnect the river to its floodplain, which improves the storage of flood waters and water quality, and recreates habitats for local wildlife. The initiative will help reduce flood risk in the basin, benefitting local wetland bird species such as redshank and kingfisher, bats, large marsh grasshopper, and various dragonflies. “Restoring the River Pang’s natural floodplain will have a lasting impact on local biodiversity, water quality, and community resilience”, said Seren Patterson, Water Stewardship Manager at The Rivers Trust. “We are already seeing great results from working on other restoration projects in the Kennet Valley with Amazon. Its commitment to improving water resilience and supporting nature-based solutions has made a real difference on the ground and shows how good water stewardship can deliver meaningful change for our rivers and the people who depend on them.”
Nature-based solutions work with nature to improve habitats and ecosystems. Interventions like new wetlands and promoting healthy soils help collect, purify, store, and distribute freshwater, addressing water security challenges more effectively and sustainably than engineered infrastructure alone. “This project demonstrates how restoring natural processes can improve water quality, reduce flood risk, and create vital habitat, said Will Hewes, Amazon's Global Water Stewardship Lead. “We're proud to partner with The Rivers Trust on this initiative, which is part of our growing global portfolio of water projects.”
The UK project is one of four new water replenishment initiatives Amazon is launching globally, expected to restore over 2 billion litres of water annually. Altogether, Amazon has announced more than 22 nature-based water projects that are expected to replenish or improve the quality of more than 11 billion litres of water—enough water to fill 4,400 Olympic swimming pools.
Amazon previously worked with The Rivers Trust and Action for the River Kennet to create two wetlands in Wiltshire, England, which will recharge over 220 million litres of groundwater annually and improve water quality. Amazon's water replenishment project included planting 11,000 native plants across the Fyfield and Wilton wetlands to help store and clean water while restoring biodiversity. The wetlands also serve multiple ecological functions, including improving soil health, preventing flooding by slowing water flow, and creating thriving habitats that have attracted diverse wildlife such as ducks, geese, swans, and numerous bird species.
Additional global projects include:
Near Guadalajara, Mexico, Amazon is supporting a watershed restoration project in collaboration with environmental services company Toroto. The project is expected to replenish 150 million litres of water each year by through natural solutions across 259 hectares of farmland–such as using vegetation and planting practices to reduce runoff and increase recharge. This will help absorb more rainwater to stop pollution from flowing into the Santiago River Basin, where water quantity and quality are ongoing challenges.
In New Mexico, Amazon is supporting the National Audubon Society's water leasing programme to help with critical flows for the Rio Grande River and two urban wetlands. This initiative is expected to help replenish over 120 million litres of water to help "keep enough water in rivers for wildlife during drier times of the year.
In North Carolina, Amazon's project with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation aims to restore and improve management across 20,000 acres of longleaf pine forests in the Pee Dee River basin. By restoring natural forest processes, the project will increase groundwater recharge and improve downstream water yields - resulting in an expected 1.6 billion litres of water replenished each year.
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