Amazon is helping fund a huge project in South Africa to plant 180 million spekboom shrubs, a native plant that absorbs carbon dioxide. The project forms part of its work toward its Climate Pledge goal to reach net-zero carbon by 2040 and is of the world’s largest nature-based carbon removal projects.
The shrubs will be planted across about 200 square miles of damaged land in the Eastern Cape, which is about twice the size of Birmingham. The land has been badly worn out by how it was used in the past, leaving it dry and eroded, and making it hard for local people to earn a living.
View 2 ImagesThe shrubs are better known as elephant bush(Image: Amazon)
Spekboom (also called elephant bush) was chosen because it can survive in dry, tough conditions and helps bring back moisture, healthier soil, and wildlife.
By absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it within leaves and roots. It acts as a natural carbon sink, helping to reduce greenhouse gases, improve soil health and fight climate change.
As it grows, it can create better conditions for other native plants to return, which can help rebuild the whole ecosystem.
Amazon is working with the World Bank and other financial organisations. The planting is due to finish by the end of 2028.
Kara Hurst, Amazon’s chief sustainability officer, said: “This is a story about nature, community, ingenuity, and scale. Spekboom is a natural wonder, but it can’t heal the land without help from the people who call the Eastern Cape home.”
View 2 ImagesThe planting is due to finish 2028(Image: Amazon)
“This project will restore the ecosystem and create jobs – a model for how nature-based solutions can enable both climate action and economic development.”
The project is also meant to support local communities by creating jobs. It aims to create about 11,000 jobs by 2030, and will train local businesses to do restoration work.
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This investment is a long-term purchase agreement for carbon credits – supporting emerging carbon removal solutions – and one of the largest private-sector commitments to nature-based restoration in South Africa’s history.