SPRING HAS SPRUNG, THE GRASS HAS RIZ
Ahhhh...springtime!! Time to cast off those winter coats and emerge from hibernation, refreshed, renewed and ready for anything...including a bit of spring cleaning.
And it turns out that here at Energy & Environment, we have a bit of cleaning to do...a drip of information here, a drop of a reminder there and a general hodgepodge of GREENING@UHN tidbits that have accumulated throughout the winter. And, because perhaps I’m suffering a slight bout of spring fever (aka, plain ol’ lazy), instead of writing out proper sentences and full newsletters, I give you...
A SMORGASBORD OF GREEN
(in no particular order)
● So, aside from hibernating, suffering spring fever and writing emails, what exactly does Energy & Environment do? Find out in the 2009 Annual Report available at http://documents.uhn.ca/sites/uhn/Environmental_Management/Annual%20Report/2009.pdf
● Biomedical waste – throwing it in the regular garbage can lead to fines, injury, and our garbage companies not taking our 21,000 pounds of waste any more...so please dispose of appropriately.
● Speaking of spring cleaning...do you have any extra binders, furniture or other office supplies? Instead of tossing them, post their availability on UHN’s Virtual Swap room at http://142.224.24.146:8080/~discussion/guests. And before you go buying all sorts of new stuff, check out the swap room first.
● Biomedical waste – throwing non-biomedical waste items in yellow bags, red bags or sharps container costs the hospital unnecessarily (do we really need to sterilize clean wrappers, newspapers and your leftover lunch, cooking abilities not withstanding?), not to mention the environmental impacts associated with waste treatment...so please dispose of appropriately.
● Nothing says springtime like getting out the ol’ two wheeler. Learn more about cycling at UHN and have your say at the very first ever Cycling Town Hall being held on April 22 (Earth Day) from 9:00 – 10:30 am in the TGH Wellness Office (1 NU 168, beside the Tim Horton’s. Dr. Chris Cavacuiti from St. Michael’s Hospital will be speaking about “Making the Case for Cycling - A Physician's Perspective”.
● Biomedical waste – please, please, please, please, please recycle batteries, but please, please, please, please, please do not use sharps containers to collect them. Get in touch for more information on how to set-up battery recycling in your department.
● Recycling – it’s good for the environment, saves UHN money and easy to do. Get the full list of what can and cannot be recycled and composted on the Energy & Environment intranet page at http://intranet.uhn.ca/departments/enviro/ ...but please remember that, because we have a private waste company servicing the hospital, “cans & bottles” (aka, metal, glass and plastic) cannot be mixed with paper or cardboard for recycling.
● Speaking of spring cleaning...UHN will once again be participating the 20 Minute Toronto Makeover on April 23. Learn more at www.toronto.ca/litter/clean-up/20minute.htm and stay tuned for UHN details.
● Energy efficiency – it’s good for the environment, saves UHN money and easy to do. Learn more about our “TLC – Care to Conserve” energy management program at http://intranet.uhn.ca/departments/enviro/tlc/index.asp.
