EvergreenHealth joined King County’s Best Workplaces for Waste Prevention and Recycling for the seventh consecutive year, recognizing the health care system’s ongoing efforts to reduce its environmental footprint and protect resources in the Puget Sound area.

EvergreenHealth shares this recognition with 111 other local businesses and organizations representing the hospitality, medical service, professional services, technology, retail, finance, government and arts and entertainment industries. King County cited several ecofriendly initiatives underway at EvergreenHealth such as a streamlined process to sort waste, recycling and compost that has already saved more than an estimated $15,000 in landfill waste costs.

Championed by EvergreenHealth’s Green Team, a volunteer group of dedicated staff responsible for promoting new ways to reduce waste, other ways the hospital is making a positive impact include:

• Composting over 55 tons of food waste in 2014, with a goal to increase that amount to 75 tons in 2015.
• Installing six new electric car chargers at parking facilities on the main campus in Kirkland.
• Establishing a plan to phase out the use of hazardous chemicals in the hospital.

“Sustainability efforts led by the Green Team are being embraced by the entire organization, including our patients and their families,” said Bob Malte, CEO of EvergreenHealth. “We’re committed to environmental stewardship in our community so that we can all live our healthiest best with the multitude of benefits from a clean, healthy environment.”

Earlier this year, EvergreenHealth received the annual Practice Greenhealth Partner for Change Award for the sixth time.

A full list of this year’s Best Workplaces for Waste Prevention and Recycling is available at http://your.kingcounty.gov/solidwaste/garbage-recycling/best-workplaces.asp.

For more information about EvergreenHealth, visit www.evergreenhealth.com.