Swedish Announces Commitment To Become Carbon Negative By 2030
Seattle-based health system will partner with Creative Energy to achieve significant greenhouse gas emission reduction for its largest hospital
SEATTLE and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Dec. 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Swedish Health Services is partnering with Creative Energy, a leader in building efficient energy systems, to decarbonize energy use for its flagship campus, Swedish First Hill. This work supports the goal for Providence's family of organizations, which includes Swedish, to become carbon negative by the end of this decade.
Swedish is one of the largest not-for-profit healthcare providers in the Northwest, with five hospitals, over 120 clinics and more than 12,000 employees.
"Our mission is to improve the health and well-being of each person we serve, and we believe that extends to how we respond to the climate crisis and its enormous toll on human health and the health of our planet," said R. Guy Hudson, M.D., MBA, Swedish CEO and President, Operations and Strategy, Providence. "As one of the region's largest healthcare providers, we have a responsibility to be part of the climate solution."
Globally, hospitals and healthcare systems are among the most intensive consumers of energy and contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Swedish and Providence have mapped out an aggressive plan to become carbon negative. Swedish Issaquah was the first campus within the Swedish system to become carbon neutral for energy use in March of this year.
"Healthcare facilities have an enormous impact on our environment," said Mike Denney, Swedish Chief Real Estate Officer. "Swedish will lead by example and demonstrate the ability to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and limit our greenhouse gas emissions."
"We are extremely proud to partner with Creative Energy to implement innovative solutions that will allow us to reduce the amount of energy and water we use to heat and cool our hospitals," Denney said. "We intend to eliminate nearly 9,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually at the Swedish First Hill campus alone, which is the equivalent of removing approximately 1,800 cars from the road each year."
Through its partnership with Creative Energy, Swedish will modernize the infrastructure of the First Hill campus to reduce wasted energy by capturing excess heat, which can be used to heat its facilities without consuming additional energy. Thermal storage will also allow off-cycle cooling and improve Swedish's ability to manage the temperatures in its facilities.
"We are proud to partner with Swedish to build a sustainable, carbon-negative and energy-efficient future for its largest hospital, right in the heart of Seattle," said Krishnan Iyer, President & CEO of Creative Energy. "This initiative will put Swedish at the forefront among hospitals that are leading the charge toward energy efficiency and significantly reducing their environmental impact."
About Swedish Health Services
Founded in 1910, Swedish is one of the largest not-for-profit health care systems in the Greater Seattle area. It is comprised of five hospital campuses (First Hill, Cherry Hill, Ballard, Edmonds and Issaquah); ambulatory care centers in Redmond and Mill Creek; and a network of more than 115 primary care and specialty-care clinics located throughout the Greater Puget Sound area. Swedish is known as a regional referral center, providing specialized treatment in areas such as cardiovascular care, cancer care, neuroscience, orthopedics, high-risk obstetrics, pediatric specialties, organ transplantation and clinical research. In 2020, Swedish provided $258 million in community benefit programs, including $30 million in free and discounted care in Western Washington.
About Creative Energy
Creative Energy is the owner and operator of one of the largest district energy systems in North America. With over 50 years of operation in downtown Vancouver and a 99.99% reliability record, Creative Energy is committed to instigate significant reductions in the greenhouse gas emissions of the cities in which they operate.
Creative Energy currently operates five energy systems, with 12 others under development in British Columbia and Ontario.
SOURCE Swedish Health Services
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