- Meta signs a deal with FIDO Tech to replenish water in City of Farmington, New Mexico
- Project is a major coup for Water United, the new AI-led collaborative community of corporates, utilities and others working to rapidly scale tech solutions to help end water scarcity in the Colorado basin
- Agreement will help Meta make progress against its commitment to be water positive in 2030
PRESS RELEASE
Farmington NM, February 11 2025
META is the latest global technology company to join an innovative water replenishment program in the Colorado River Basin.
Under a new agreement with FIDO Tech, Meta will fund the use of powerful FIDO AI to rapidly reduce leakage across 300km of clean water pipeline network in the City of Farmington for 10 years.
The project, using an award-winning partnership model called FIDO Plus, is the latest to be launched under the auspices of Water United, a new private public catalytic community committed to developing a watershed-level solution to water scarcity.
FIDO Plus projects are already running in Arizona and Nevada, with several more in the planning stages. Meta’s project in Farmington is the first in New Mexico and will benefit water security in the Colorado River Basin.
By pairing businesses and local utilities with its volumetric AI technology, FIDO Plus delivers fast, local improvements to community water resilience through leakage reduction and transparent validated results for water stewardship reporting.
In addition to supporting the Farmington project, Meta has also joined Water United as a partner member, sitting alongside its founder members Microsoft, PepsiCo, FIDO Tech, Oldcastle Infrastructure (a CRH Company), Water Foundry (an Earth Finance Company) and Atlantean Media.
The collaboration is working to unite the public and private sectors and accelerate water action to develop an AI-watershed model across the Colorado River Basin, starting by reducing non-revenue water.
By supporting the deployment of FIDO AI in Farmington’s water utility, Meta will make progress against its commitments to be water positive in 2030 and also to return 200% of the water it consumes in high water-stressed areas.
Meta has been part of the UN CEO Water Mandate and the Water Resilience Coalition since 2022. It focuses investment on water restoration projects in water stressed regions that also provide co-benefits such as supporting local water supply or restoring local habitats and wildlife, including existing projects with first nation peoples in New Mexico and the Colorado River.
Stefanie Woodward, Water Restoration Lead at Meta, said: “There’s a genuine need to accelerate collective action for water restoration efforts. FIDO Plus and the wider Water United initiative provides an opportunity to make a systemic impact on water availability through the use of AI. With our data center in the Colorado River basin, Farmington has been the earliest opportunity we have to work with AI in basin restoration and I am very excited to see the results.”
Victoria Edwards, Co-founder & CEO of FIDO Tech, said: “Companies like Meta are leading the way on transformative water action and have the resources to support the rapid scaling of technologies that work without affecting the capacity in already-stretched utilities. It’s a real win-win, for them and the environment. By working in partnership with FIDO Plus and the City of Farmington, this new project gives Water United an expanded opportunity to connect water resilience activities through actionable AI and make a big difference in the Colorado basin.”
Will Sarni, Practice Leader, Water and Nature at Earth Finance, added: “The Colorado River Basin is critical, yet it remains one of the most overstressed and overallocated water sources in the world. To help solve water scarcity at scale, there is a need for multinationals, utilities and innovative technology companies to unite and deliver impact. I’m delighted to see Meta join the Water United initiative through a FIDO Plus project with the City of Farmington.”
Estimated to support $1.4 trillion in economic activity and 16 million jobs*, the Colorado River provides water for more than 40 million people across seven Western states, including Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, Nevada, Arizona and California.
Benedikte Webb, the Operations, Maintenance & Environmental Administrator at the City of Farmington, said: “The City of Farmington is thrilled to see businesses investing in our community infrastructure, especially in the area of water conservation. The installation of FIDO leak detection equipment is a significant step forward in safeguarding our water resources, a critical focus for our region. This project not only supports the City’s 40-year water plan; it highlights the incredible growth potential of the Four Corners region, showcasing how public-private partnerships can drive sustainable development and enhance our community’s future.”
Stefanie Woodward, Water Restoration Lead at Meta
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FIDO AI and non-revenue water: Non-revenue water (NRW), of which leakage is a major part, is an important cause of water stress, and because leaks often don’t appear above ground finding them can be a headache for over stretched utilities. The World Bank estimates that around 30% of the world’s water is lost in this way, although the percentage varies widely across utilities.
FIDO is one of the sector’s most sophisticated AI solutions, with the unique distinction of being able to identify leaks and, most importantly, rank them by size, even in the noisiest networks, and regardless of pipe material or condition.
About FIDO Tech: FIDO is a UK-based global technology company using deep learning from its vast curated water data sets to rapidly improve global water management and community water resilience at scale. Its AI is the only technology which can find leaks and other water events occurring on any pipeline network in real time and rank them by size for effective prioritization. Its results are verified using volumetric water benefit accounting, a global water stewardship standard, and it is now used in five continents, with offices in the UK and the US. For more information visit www.fido.tech.
About Water United: Water United is an initiative to unite the public and private sectors to accelerate water action across the Colorado River Basin – one of the most overstressed, overallocated water sources in the world. Its founding partners are Microsoft, PepsiCo, FIDO Tech, Oldcastle Infrastructure (a CRH Company), Water Foundry (and Earth Finance Company) and Atlantean Media. For more information visit: https://water-united.com/
Sources
*https://www.usu.edu/today/story/research-from-usus-center-for-colorado-river-studies-cited-in-us-presidents-report-on-economy
