diff --git a/docs/releases/2.20.0.md b/docs/releases/2.20.0.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..9d679251f5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/releases/2.20.0.md
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+#### Release Links
+
+!!! Info
+    This version has not been released yet
+
+## Upgrades
+There are no required actions or considerations with this release. As always, we suggest upgrading all minor versions.
+
+## Deprecations
+
+### Deleted Backups
+* When a backup is deleted via the webhook, it will now actually removed from the API rather than being flagged as deleted. The `Backup` type field `deleted` is deprecated, and will be removed in a future release. Additionally, `includeDeleted` if requested when querying backups will not change the result as there will be no deleted backups to include.
diff --git a/services/api/database/migrations/20240507000000_delete_orphaned_backup_resources.js b/services/api/database/migrations/20240507000000_delete_orphaned_backup_resources.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..37ad583535
--- /dev/null
+++ b/services/api/database/migrations/20240507000000_delete_orphaned_backup_resources.js
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+/**
+ * @param { import("knex").Knex } knex
+ * @returns { Promise<void> }
+ */
+exports.up = function(knex) {
+  // remove any deleted environment backups that are flagged as deleted
+  // or where the environment/project are deleted or no longer exist
+  return knex.schema
+    .raw(`DELETE eb
+      FROM environment_backup eb
+      LEFT JOIN environment e ON eb.environment = e.id
+      WHERE eb.deleted != '0000-00-00 00:00:00' OR e.id IS NULL OR e.deleted != '0000-00-00 00:00:00' OR e.project NOT IN (SELECT id FROM project)
+    `)
+    // drop the deleted column
+    .alterTable('environment_backup', (table) => {
+      table.dropColumn('deleted');
+    });
+  };
+
+  /**
+   * @param { import("knex").Knex } knex
+   * @returns { Promise<void> }
+   */
+  exports.down = function(knex) {
+    return knex.schema
+    .alterTable('environment_backup', (table) => {
+        table.timestamp('deleted').notNullable().defaultTo('0000-00-00 00:00:00');
+    });
+  };
diff --git a/services/api/src/resources/backup/resolvers.ts b/services/api/src/resources/backup/resolvers.ts
index 309a33ede4..a4924d1227 100644
--- a/services/api/src/resources/backup/resolvers.ts
+++ b/services/api/src/resources/backup/resolvers.ts
@@ -124,7 +124,7 @@ const getRestoreLocation = async (backupId, restoreLocation, sqlClientPool) => {
 
 export const getBackupsByEnvironmentId: ResolverFn = async (
   { id: environmentId },
-  { includeDeleted, limit },
+  { limit },
   { sqlClientPool, hasPermission, adminScopes }
 ) => {
   const environment = await environmentHelpers(
@@ -142,10 +142,6 @@ export const getBackupsByEnvironmentId: ResolverFn = async (
     .orderBy('created', 'desc')
     .orderBy('id', 'desc');
 
-  if (!includeDeleted) {
-    queryBuilder = queryBuilder.where('deleted', '0000-00-00 00:00:00');
-  }
-
   if (limit) {
     queryBuilder = queryBuilder.limit(limit);
   }
diff --git a/services/api/src/resources/backup/sql.ts b/services/api/src/resources/backup/sql.ts
index 1af63dc86f..1edaf3ae50 100644
--- a/services/api/src/resources/backup/sql.ts
+++ b/services/api/src/resources/backup/sql.ts
@@ -13,24 +13,6 @@ export const Sql = {
     knex('env_vars')
       .where('project', projectId)
       .toString(),
-  selectBackupsByEnvironmentId: ({
-    environmentId,
-    includeDeleted
-  }: {
-    environmentId: number;
-    includeDeleted: boolean;
-  }) => {
-    const query = knex('environment_backup')
-      .where('environment', environmentId)
-      .orderBy('created', 'desc')
-      .orderBy('id', 'desc');
-
-    if (includeDeleted) {
-      return query.toString();
-    }
-
-    return query.where('deleted', '=', '0000-00-00 00:00:00').toString();
-  },
   insertBackup: ({
     id,
     environment,
@@ -56,7 +38,7 @@ export const Sql = {
   deleteBackup: (backupId: string) =>
     knex('environment_backup')
       .where('backup_id', backupId)
-      .update({ deleted: knex.fn.now() })
+      .delete()
       .toString(),
   truncateBackup: () =>
     knex('environment_backup')
diff --git a/services/api/src/typeDefs.js b/services/api/src/typeDefs.js
index c10f70919f..59a4dc97d5 100644
--- a/services/api/src/typeDefs.js
+++ b/services/api/src/typeDefs.js
@@ -965,7 +965,7 @@ const typeDefs = gql`
     source: String
     backupId: String
     created: String
-    deleted: String
+    deleted: String @deprecated(reason: "This will be removed in a future release.")
     restore: Restore
   }