North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System to Improve Environmental Sustainability of 12 Hospitals

The North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System will incorporate a number of environmentally-sound practices into daily operations at the 12 hospitals it manages across Long Island and in New York City, under an agreement signed in late April with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The hospital system has pledged to conserve water and energy, reduce air pollution, increase recycling and use environmentally-preferable materials at all of its facilities.

“Medical professionals work every day to improve the health of the people they serve, and the environmentally sound practices in this agreement will help them create a healthier environment for all,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith Enck. “The eve of Earth Day is the perfect time to sign this comprehensive agreement between EPA and an entire health care network.”

Under the new agreement between EPA and North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, the system will:

·         Join EPA’s Energy Star program with the goal of reducing energy usage by at least 10 percent. North Shore-Long   Island Jewish Health System already completed a $15 million energy and water conservation project and plans to spend an additional $30 million to cut energy usage.

·         Join EPA’s WasteWise program, which reduces waste and increases recycling, with the goals of improving recycling, establishing a food composting program, and minimizing construction waste that goes to landfills.

·         Join EPA’s Clean Construction USA Program, which will reduce air pollution from vehicles and construction. North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System will work with contractors to ensure that emission-reducing equipment is used during construction projects.

·         Build green buildings by continuing to work with the U.S. Green Building Council-Long Island to earn the council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating for eight construction projects.

·         Install water fixtures certified by EPA’s WaterSense program, which use at least 10 percent less water than conventional products. North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System’s new construction projects will use water efficient toilets, urinals, showers and faucets.

·         Incorporate the use of environmentally-preferable landscaping materials and consider practices like collecting rainwater for reuse, using porous pavement in parking lots, and installing green roofs and those that reflect the sun, using EPA’s GreenScapes landscaping program as its guide.

·         Apply for membership in EPA’s Coal Combustion Products Partnership Program with the goal of increasing the use of coal combustion products, which require less energy to produce than typical concrete and cement.

·         Improve the efficiency of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center’s 2.8 megawatt combined heat and power plant, making it an even cleaner and more efficient power source.

North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System will submit a status report to EPA every six months, and EPA will use the report to determine the environmental benefits associated with system’s activities. The agreement covers North Shore University Hospital, Long Island Jewish Medical Center, Franklin Hospital, Forest Hills Hospital, Glen Cove Hospital, Huntington Hospital, Plainview Hospital, Cohen Children’s Medical Center, Southside Hospital, Syosset Hospital and Zucker Hillside Hospital on Long Island and Staten Island University Hospital in New York City.

Since 2006, EPA has reached similar agreements with the New York Jets and New York Giants for the New Meadowlands Stadium, the New York Mets for Citi Field stadium, the Destiny USA mall project in Syracuse, N.Y., the real estate firms Cushman & Wakefield and Hartz Mountain Industries, Inc., Rutgers University for several of its campuses across New Jersey, Montclair State University in Montclair, N.J., Monmouth University in West Long Branch, N.J., St. John’s University in Queens, N.Y., Raritan Valley Community College in Branchburg, N.J, and Stony Brook University Hospital in Stony Brook, N.Y.