Why go green?
The following quotation is adapted from the abstract of a paper published in Hemodialysis International (January 2012)…(1)
“As dialysis practitioners we are particularly careless in the use of natural resources — especially water and power — and seem broadly ignorant of the profound medical waste issues created by single use dialysis equipment.”
If we extrapolate the data recorded in this paper into a relative ‘world’ dialysis population (2011) estimated to be ~2 million patients, a generic “global dialysis service” would consume …
- ~156 billion litres of water, ~2/3rd of which is the high-grade, potable-standard reject water that is created during reverse osmosis.
- ~1.62 billion kWh of power – mostly generated from coal and other eco-damaging sources.
and would create…
- ~625,000 tonnes of potentially re-usable plastic waste, if simple sterilizing techniques were considered and installed on-site.
As we continue to plunder our natural resources we remain ignorant of the need to seriously consider…
- Re-use or re-cycling of water and plastic waste
- Exploration of renewable energy options
- Steps to reduce the carbon footprint of dialysis services
It really is no longer excusable… sustainable dialysis practices can be and must be a global goal for the coming decade.
This website encapsulates who we are, our dialysis unit, Barwon Health Renal Unit, Geelong, Victoria, Australia. It captures what we have achieved, the directions we have taken and our aspirations for the future.
We invite you to absorb the content, become empowered and gain inspiration to make a difference in your own units.