Kaiser Permanente Recognized for Efforts to Spread Health by Curbing Climate Change

Kaiser Permanente’s Climate Footprint Efforts are Rewarded for Third Consecutive Year

OAKLAND, Calif., April 1 /PRNewswire/ — Kaiser Permanente has been named a “Climate Action Leader” for voluntarily calculating, verifying and publicly reporting its greenhouse gas emissions under the California Climate Action Registry. This is the third consecutive year Kaiser Permanente has won this award from the Registry, a private, nonprofit organization committed to solving climate change through emissions reporting and reduction.

“Participation in the California Climate Action Registry represents a critical step toward effectively managing greenhouse gas emissions and improving Kaiser Permanente’s overall sustainability efforts,” said Kathy Gerwig, Kaiser Permanente’s vice president for Workplace Safety and environmental stewardship officer. “Climate change will cause health effects that directly impact Kaiser Permanente’s ability to fulfill our mission of quality, affordable health care. At Kaiser Permanente, we believe a preventative approach to community health, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions is part of preventing the spread of infectious diseases and other health effects of climate change.”

As a global leader in sustainability, Kaiser Permanente is:

• Promoting walking and biking: Kaiser Permanente’s Community Health Initiatives build parks and bike paths to promote physical activity and reduce air pollution.
• Hosting farmers markets: To reduce car trips to shops and increase access to locally grown produce, Kaiser Permanente hosts 30 farmers markets at its facilities in six states.
• Conserving water: Between 2006 and 2008, Kaiser Permanente’s California hospitals used an average of 107,143 gallons of water per bed per year, 20 percent less than the average hospital consumption in California, and 40 percent less than the average hospital consumption nationally. Kaiser Permanente improved its water efficiency by converting to digital imaging machines, each of which saves approximately 925,000 gallons of potable water per year while eliminating the use of harmful chemicals.
• Purchasing energy-efficient equipment: In 2008, all laptop and desktop computers and monitors newly deployed throughout Kaiser Permanente received at least a silver-rating by the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool.
• Recycling electronics responsibly: Through a partnership with Redemtech, Kaiser Permanente either resold or recycled 74,000 pieces of Kaiser Permanente’s electronic equipment in 2008.
• Recycling construction debris: At the site of a new hospital in California, Kaiser Permanente construction crews recycled 100 percent of the building materials generated during the demolition of two warehouses.

The California Climate Action Registry was originally created by the State of California in 2001 to protect and promote companies’ and organizations’ early actions to calculate, report and manage their greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions reports are certified by independent third parties to ensure compliance with CCAR protocols and standardization across participants and sectors. Organizations that are willing to meet the accounting standards and third-party certification requirements show their serious intent to address climate change. CCAR has been widely recognized as a gold standard for public reporting of greenhouse gas emissions.

“We are very pleased to recognize Kaiser Permanente for its climate change leadership and exemplary initiatives to manage its impact on the environment. By being a Climate Action Leader, it has demonstrated its commitment to voluntarily calculate and publicly report its greenhouse gas emissions according to the rigorous standards of the California Climate Action Registry,” said Gary Gero, president, California Climate Action Registry. “Kaiser Permanente not only serves as a role model for other participants in the health care industry but to organizations across the country.”

About the California Climate Action Registry

The California Climate Action Registry is a private nonprofit organization committed to solving climate change through emissions reporting and reduction. It serves as a voluntary greenhouse gas (GHG) registry for entity-wide emission inventories and also establishes protocols for GHG emission reduction (offset) projects through its Climate Action Reserve program. The protocols are created through a rigorous, transparent process and are widely regarded as among the highest quality standards for offset projects. The Climate Action Reserve also accredits and oversees independent verifiers and tracks the transactions of project offset inventories, adding confidence and credibility to the voluntary carbon market.

The accuracy, transparency and integrity of all of the California Registry’s standards have earned it the reputation as a respected and internationally recognized leader in climate change issues.

The California Climate Action Registry was originally formed by the State of California in 2001 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. For additional information, please visit www.climateregistry.org.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is shaping the future of health care. We are America‘s leading health care provider and not-for-profit health plan. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 8.6 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to www.kp.org/newscenter.

www.kaiserpermanente.org

SOURCE Kaiser Permanente