Marin General Hospital Recognized for Green Business Practices by CalRecycle
GREENBRAE, CA — The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) has named Marin General Hospital as one of its winners of the 2010 Waste Reduction Awards. The awards are made in conjunction with America Recycles Day to encourage and recognize green business practices as part of the agency’s Waste Reduction Awards Program (WRAP).
“WRAP acknowledges businesses throughout California recognition for implementing practices that help protect the environment and preserve our natural resources,” said CalRecycle Director Margo Reid Brown. “We have 80 first-time winners, and many organizations have come back year after year with new and stronger waste prevention programs.”
The WRAP award website cites Marin General Hospital’s solid waste stream management tracking program as “very effective,” and points to its “ongoing and passionate commitment” to sustainability. Some of the hospital’s environmental achievements include:
- One-half of the hospital’s paper purchases between 2007-2009 were recycled-content paper, and the percentage of recycled-content paper is on the rise
- The hospital’s exclusive vendor for Environmental and Nutritional Services, Sodexo, was named “One of the World's Most Ethical Companies” by the Ethisphere Institute in 2009 and 2010 for its commitment to sustainable and ethical business practices
- The hospital recycled 263.88 tons of waste in 2009, representing 30 percent of its total solid and medical waste. As a result of efforts to segregate, divert, and recycle its waste, Marin General Hospital generated nearly $16,000 in earnings from recyclables.
“Everything we do every day is about sustainability,” said Julie Lavezzo, Director of Safety and Security at Marin General Hospital. “It’s not just about recycling bottles, cans and paper. It’s about how we manage our hazardous and toxic wastes, energy consumption, and how we minimize our negative impact to the environment.”
Businesses nominated for the award are evaluated individually, based on reported waste prevention, recycling and composting, procurement, and educational activities. The state’s 285 winners reported diverting more than 2 million tons of material from landfills during 2009 and recorded more than $190 million in cost savings from their waste-reduction efforts. (This year’s winners included the World Series champion San Francisco Giants and AT&T Park, which instituted a Green Team to work with fans to separate recycling and composting).
WRAP has been recognizing California business waste reduction efforts since 1993. Profiles of 2010 WRAP winners are on the CalRecycle website.
