Corewell Health renews sustainability goals
April 25, 2023
Grand Rapids, Mich., April 25, 2023 – In recognition of Earth Day 2023, Corewell Health™ today announced it is renewing its sustainability goals and progressing on its goal for all its facilities to be carbon neutral by 2040.
In the last year the organization made strides in its goals by
- Building a 2.35-acre solar array adjacent to Corewell Health Rehab and Nursing Center Leffingwell in Grand Rapids, which will go live in May 2023 and will provide 16% of the facility’s energy needs—the equivalent of powering 76 homes year-round,
- Constructing a 5-megawatt co-generation facility at Corewell Health Butterworth Hospital which will go live in June 2023 and generate an average of 72% of the hospital’s annual electric usage or 42,000 megawatt hours of electricity per year plus will recover heat from the engine’s exhaust to generate steam required for sterile processing and humidification and will generate hot water for heating the building,
- Initiating an engineering assessment for installation of EV level 2 chargers at all 22 acute care facilities and large off-site facilities statewide to determine what infrastructure is needed to begin installing in 2024, and
- Continuing efforts started in 2015 to reduce electric energy consumption in southeast Michigan by over 9,000,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) per year by upgrading to LED lighting in high-use areas and renovated spaces across all eight hospitals and outpatient sites.
“One of the first commitments we made as a new health system was our Sustainability Pledge,” said Tina Freese Decker, President & CEO of Corewell Health. “We committed to protect the natural environment by greening our operations and investing in the health of our local and global communities. We know that this work requires us to purposefully choose actions which make a positive and sustainable impact, and that innovation is key to our success.”
Since 2020, Corewell Health has completed energy savings projects, including building performance optimization and infrastructure upgrades, that have resulted in over 10,000,000 kWh in electricity savings and 800,000 therms in natural gas savings. These projects have resulted in over $1 million in reduced costs for the organization, all of which is invested back into patient care.
Corewell Health’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2040 represents a long-term investment in improving the local, regional and global environment and reflects the organization’s longstanding commitment to improving community health.
Building toward the goal of being carbon neutral, Corewell Health aims to achieve the following goals:
By 2025:
- Recycle, compost or reprocess 40% of waste
- Purchase 20% of total food products from local, diverse and sustainable sources
- Reduce carbon emissions from energy consumption by 15%
- Double our spending with Certified Diverse Owned Businesses
Beginning in 2025:
- 50% of newly purchased or leased fleet vehicles will be electric, hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles
By 2040:
- All Corewell Health facilities will be carbon neutral
About Corewell Health™
People are at the heart of everything we do, and the inspiration for our legacy of outstanding outcomes, innovation, strong community partnerships, philanthropy and transparency. Corewell Health™ is a not-for-profit health system that provides health care and coverage with an exceptional team of 60,000+ dedicated people—including more than 11,500 physicians and advanced practice providers and more than 15,000 nurses providing care and services in 22 hospitals, 300+ outpatient locations and several post-acute facilities—and Priority Health, a provider-sponsored health plan serving more than 1.3 million members. Through experience and collaboration, we are reimagining a better, more equitable model of health and wellness. For more information, visit corewellhealth.org.