The Royal United Hospital is taking part in NHS Sustainability Day tomorrow (Thursday 28th March 2013) in a bid to help local residents see the importance of being green.
Trusts across the region will be engaging with staff, patients and the public to get people to understand the mutual benefits of sustainability and health.
To mark the day, staff will be participating in a number of educational and imaginative activities, which includes joining forces with the NHS Forest to plant ten trees on the boundary of the hospital site.
NHS Forest will plant a tree for every ten people who agree to the RUH keeping in touch with them via email, rather than by post. These ten trees represent one hundred people who have signed up to become members of the NHS Foundation Trust, and who are happy to supply the hospital with their email addresses. They are all doing their bit to help reduce their costs and their carbon footprint.
Howard Jones, Director of Estates and Facilities, said: “I am delighted that the RUH, like so many NHS organisations in our region, is taking part in NHS Sustainability Day. Sustainability has become an accepted way of working here at the RUH and we have already acheived so much in terms of reducing the amount of fuel we use, the energy we save, and creating more sustainable buildings.”
Exhibition stands in the Lansdown foyer will promote greener travel and highlight some of the RUH’s environmental progress to date.
The RUH is actively reducing its carbon footprint. A new Energy Centre; a gas-fired combined heat and power plant that replaced inefficient steam boilers was installed over a year ago. They have significantly reduced the amount of waste destined for landfill and they use a biodigester machine for more efficient disposal of food waste. LED lighting is also used widely throughout the hospital.
