LiveSmart BC Community Feature
Interior Health Works on Environmental Health
Aman Hundal has seen the impacts of climate change in Fort St. James, his childhood home. The changing snowfall patterns and the pine beetle infestation have been hard to ignore.
He applies this awareness to his position as Manager for Environmental Sustainability at Interior Health.
The position didn’t exist a few years ago. Back then, green initiatives were initiated by a green committee and interested staff managed projects off the sides of their desks.
Times have changed. The B.C. government is working to ensure that its operations are carbon neutral for 2010 and every year thereafter. This commitment – enshrined in legislation – applies to public sector organizations like Interior Health.
The goal of carbon neutrality helped the health authority formalize its commitment to sustainability.
“Our goal is to increase the health and wellbeing of our population, and the state of the environment is one indicator of population health,” said Hundal. “It has taken time, but people are starting to see the connection.”
Interior Health has already implemented dozens of sustainability initiatives.
It received three Conservation Excellence Awards from Fortis BC for upgrades at Kelowna General Hospital, Cottonwoods Extended Care and the Three Links Manor Residential Care Home in the Central Okanagan. These projects included lighting retrofits, central plant upgrades, building automation controls, building envelope upgrades and domestic water retrofits.
Interior health has switched from diesel fuel to biodiesel fuel in four of six logistics delivery trucks. The fuel is biodegradable and derived from locally grown crops.
Another transportation project will encourage staff to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by traveling less. Hundal is organizing a contest to increase the use of MS Live Meeting, an online meeting tool. It will complement the new travel policy, which encourages use of hybrid vehicles in the authority’s fleet.
Earlier this year, the Interior Health human resources department automated employee performance reviews and is now saving 55 thousand sheets of paper annually.
Most importantly, sustainability is now one of four categories included in decision briefs, in addition to human resources, patient care and finance. This change has increased awareness of environmental sustainability throughout the health authority.
Interior Health employs 18,000 people and serves a large geographic region from Williams Lake to Cranbrook.
People from all levels of health care come to the table to table to talk about sustainability possibilities,” said Hundal. “You’d be surprised how many people want to get involved.”
For more information about B.C.'s carbon neutral goals, click here. For information about Interior Health’s initiatives, email Aman Hundal.
