"The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it."
Zero30
Now, here's the bad news.
If we all carry on as we are, we face a disaster of our own making on a global scale. That’s irreversible damage to the natural world, our communities, our lives.
We’re running out of time but we do still have a chance.
That’s providing we all do our bit. You, us, now.
Our Patch
We need to do something. Why not start here?
The planet is warming at an unprecedented rate, in a way that affects practically everybody. Not least those who happen to live here.
The Humber is one of the coastal regions around the world officially listed at high risk due to rising sea levels and increasing flood threat. With 90% of Hull standing below the high-tide line, the devastating floods of 2007 are a sign of things to come, should we choose to do nothing.
With the NHS representing more than 5% of the UK’s total carbon footprint, we know we’re a significant part of the problem. That also gives us the chance to play a big part in putting it right.
We think it’s time to do something bold. Not just for us but for everyone.
You could say we have a mountain to climb…
Our carbon emissions mountain
The NHS has a target to achieve 80% reduction by 2032. We want to improve this by two years and 20%.
40% of all emissions within the NHS come from acute settings.
Our Plan
Why not start now?
Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is making an ambitious commitment now to be carbon neutral by 2030. We call it Zero30.
This would comfortably put us among the greenest hospitals in the UK, and send a strong message to the rest of the world that we’re doing our bit to overcome the climate crisis.
Here’s what we want to achieve in each priority area:
Energy
Minimise energy use and replace fossil fuels with zero carbon energy sources to fuel the trust.
Water
Minimise water use in all our buildings.
Waste
Remove, reduce, reuse and recycle, wherever possible.
Travel
Push low-carbon travel for patients, visitors and staff, and reduce our business journeys.
Procurement
Ensure sustainability is central to any purchases made.
Buildings
Provide healthy, sustainable and biodiverse spaces for patients, staff and visitors.
Care
Work with patients on pathways that deliver more efficient and sustainable whole life care.
People and Partners
Inspire and inform our people and partners to deliver sustainable healthcare.
Our Projects
Lighting
22,000 light fittings at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital as well as smaller hospital sites around the city have now been replaced with SMART LED lighting. This switch is estimated to have reduced our carbon emissions by 225 tonnes per annum.
Field of dreams
We have created a groundbreaking 11,000 solar panel scheme at Castle Hill Hospital that will transform our carbon footprint. It is already generating enough energy to meet the daytime running needs of the Castle Hill Hospital site. This saves the trust between £250,000 and £300,000 per month.
Building insulation
A major project insulating buildings across the trust is massively reducing heat loss. So far, we have upgraded building insulation to cover an area four times the size of Wembley Stadium and replaced old inefficient windows.
Decarbonise Heating
We are installing a district heating system around our sites to enable us to switch to renewable sources of heating. Removing 15 gas fired boilers and replacing them with heat pumps is now saving over 2.8MWh of gas, the equivalent to 500 tonnes of CO2, per annum.
Anaesthetic Gases
We aim to reduce anaesthetic gas emissions by 50% by 2025. Already, work involving our anaesthetists, midwives and facilities staff has delivered an overall reduction in anaesthetic gas carbon emissions of 36%.
Wind farm
We are currently exploring the feasibility of a long-term project to supply our offsite electricity through micro-wind turbine technology.
Our Story
Caring for people and the planet
Section of woodland planted as part of carbon offsetting scheme for Hull’s £8m ICU There’s no doubt that Hull’s new multi-million pound Intensive Care Unit
Hospital gas emissions slashed at Women and Children’s Hospital
Thousands of pounds and thousands of tonnes of carbon emissions saved as part of Trust drive to achieve net zero by 2030 A team
Castle Hill Hospital now completely powered by its own solar energy
It took just five months to install, but now a local hospital trust’s investment in solar technology is paying dividends. Hull University Teaching Hospitals
Asthma project is a breath of fresh air
A Hull-based project designed to improve outcomes for asthma patients and reduce climate change has won a national award A Hull-based team seeking to reduce
If you want to get involved in any way, or have any ideas that you think might help, register your interest today.
What can I do at home?
A few general tips…
Travelling
- Walk or cycle if you can
- Take public transport instead of driving
- Consider getting an electric vehicle
Relaxing
- Improve insulation
- Use LED light bulbs
- Buy appliances with high efficiency ratings
- Set your thermostat no higher than 19°C
Feeding... and throwing
- Eat less meat and dairy
- Eliminate food waste as much as possible
- Reduce, reuse and recycle your other waste
- Buy good quality products that will last
- Share things that you don’t use frequently, rather than buying your own
It's simple really.
Whether at work, at home, or out and about, don’t leave it to someone else.
Be someone who did something. Be someone who was bold. That’s what we’re doing.
We think zero:thirty is possible.
Why not here? Why not now?
Why not us?
