Hospitals to adopt meat-free menus in effort to reduce carbon emissions?

As reported in the Guardian (26 January 2009) it appears that hospitals will, as part of a wider NHS carbon reduction strategy, take meat off the menus.

Apparently, the NHS accounts for 3% of all carbon emissions in England and cutting meat from the menu would, as implied by the Guardian article, result in a reduction in methane emissions from cattle and sheep! Presumably this is because if the NHS didn’t buy meat products, this would reduce the number of cattle and sheep required to satisfy the NHS’s demand for meat?

For further information on this and other proposed strategies to reduce the NHS’s carbon emissions, read the full Guardian article here.

NHS carbon strategy consultation deadline extended to 30 September 2008

The consultation deadline for the draft Carbon reduction Strategy for the NHS in England has been extended until 30 September.

The Strategy is the first output of the new NHS Sustainable Development Unit, created “to provide the leadership, the support, and the ammunition NHS organisations need to do their bit.”

The strategy is needed to address climate change imperatives. The NHS is the largest public sector contributor to climate change, responsible for some 18 million tonnes of carbon dioxide production per annum.

The NHS Carbon Reduction Strategy is the first step in taking forward a sustainable development programme in the NHS in England.

The strategy document shows where NHS carbon dioxide emissions are coming from and proposes clear actions for reducing that carbon footprint. It stresses that is the organisations and people of the NHS who are responsible for the carbon, so it is up to the NHS to reduce it.

To download the strategy document and/or feedback a personal or organisational response to the NHS Carbon reduction Strategy, click here.

Readers might like to view the response to the strategy from the Environment Agency, which can be accessed here.