First, do no harm. It is a credo the medical world strives to live by. And in Massachusetts, significant new clean energy commitments by electric utility NStar (if approved as part of a pending merger proceeding) will help protect our state’s health care system and the people it serves. NStar’s efforts also support the Green Communities Act (GCA), a landmark law passed in 2008 that promotes energy efficiency and renewable energy in Massachusetts.
Hospitals can also play a major role in supporting GCA efforts and in lowering their energy costs.
Hospitals rack up $300 million in energy bills each year in Boston alone. One statewide hospital chain finds its annual energy tab approaching $100 million. The U.S. Department of Energy says hospital energy costs are rising – up by 56 percent in 2008, for example – – and will continue to climb. At a time when health care providers are under tremendous pressure to control costs, ever-higher energy bills are a serious concern.
That’s where the Green Communities Act comes in. It helps health care facilities – – and everyone else in Massachusetts – – use energy more efficiently, while spurring development of home-grown sources of clean, renewable energy. Developing local energy sources is of particular concern here in New England, where we don’t have oil, coal or natural gas fields of our own.
Over the next four years, GCA investments are expected to deliver ratepayers net savings of $5.8 billion. It’s projected that every $1.10 invested will result in $2.50 in customer benefits, according to the state’s electricity report released last July. For health care facilities, that means spending less on energy and more on their core mission of curing the sick and keeping people healthy.
The GCA’s emphasis on cleaner energy dovetails with the ethos of preventing disease; by cutting pollution, it promotes healthier communities. Its focus on efficiency and non-fossil fuels also helps medical facilities do their part to curb climate change. That’s especially important to hospitals, which are on the front lines when it comes to dealing with the human effects of strong storms, severe flooding, heat waves and other extreme weather phenomena.
The GCA require 15 percent of Massachusetts’ electricity to be supplied by new renewable power sources by 2020. That provision creates regulatory certainty, attracts investment and encourages the use of low-carbon fuels that help curb greenhouse gas emissions. The GCA continues to make Massachusetts a magnet for clean-energy innovators. Just as doctors have an obligation to do no harm to their patients, hospitals have an obligation to do no harm to the communities they serve.
GCA Action items for hospitals include:
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and their carbon footprint;
Increasing energy efficiencies;
Preparing for extreme weather events and higher sea levels;
Investing in renewable, cleaner energy;
Actively participating in Boston’s Green Ribbon Commission, a group of business, institutional and civic leaders in Boston working to develop shared strategies for fighting climate change in coordination with Mayor Thomas Menino’s Climate Action Plan.
The GCA helps health care facilities cut pollution, while spending less on dirty energy. For the sake of a healthy future, let’s keep the Green Communities Act strong.
