This text is part of the special Philanthropy section
Quebec’s health system represents 3.6% of the province’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. To reduce this percentage to zero by 2040, the consulting firm Dunsky Energy + Climate has developed recommendations compiled in a “turnkey” roadmap, thanks to funding from the Trottier Family Foundation.
The consequences of climate change are already being felt everywhere. A study carried out in British Columbia shows that rising temperatures, drought and floods, among other things, can lead to “major failures of the health system, disruptions in the provision of care, temporary evacuations and even closures , creating health emergencies for patients and the community in general.” Looking at health through the prism of climate and vice versa is therefore important to anticipate current and future issues, but also to reduce GHGs.
Last year, the Trottier Family Foundation announced an investment of $10 million over five years to decarbonize hospitals and improve their resilience to global warming. The financing of the roadmap, commissioned by the Association for Public Health of Quebec (ASPQ), is in line with this commitment. “We notice that there are a lot of gaps in the health system when it comes to climate change issues, because it is not a government priority,” says Éric St-Pierre, general director of the foundation. We completely understand, because there are already immense health problems in Quebec, but we still have to take an interest in them. »
While several initiatives exist on a small scale, more structuring measures are necessary to limit carbon emissions, according to Mr. St-Pierre. The report prepared by Dunsky Energy + Climate reveals that buildings in the health sector are responsible for approximately 65% of GHG emissions from state infrastructure. And this, even though they represent a little more than a third of the surface area. The overwhelming majority of direct emissions are linked to fossil fuels used to heat air and domestic water. The emergency transport of patients by ambulance, shuttle and plane accounts for 7% of emissions.
Targeted recommendations
Hospitals are the largest emitters, because of their greater “energy intensity” than other buildings. Thus, their high activity rate, but above all “a high ventilation rate to comply with health standards”, make them more demanding infrastructures.
Among the suggested measures is reducing electricity consumption by using light-emitting diode (LED) lighting, which uses energy more efficiently. Heat recovery is also on the program, while significant losses are observed in medical buildings. Finally, the report recommends replacing natural gas – a fossil energy – with renewable energies in buildings, and electrifying vehicles as well as ambulances from 2024.
“Once we avoid energy consumed for nothing, decarbonization requires replacing fossil fuels with other, renewable ones, including electrical technologies such as geothermal energy, as a priority,” confirms Audrey Yank, consultant at Dunsky Energy + Climate . Carbon-free healthcare buildings would prevent emissions of around 450,000 tonnes of GHGs per year. » Geothermal energy is a technique which, thanks to a system of pumps, uses energy from the ground to heat or cool a building.
To achieve its objective, the firm Dunsky Énergie + Climat estimates that Quebec will have to invest $3.8 billion. However, such a plan would also save $787 million. For example, the gradual and complete electrification of ambulances and the health network’s vehicle fleet could generate savings of 80% in energy costs and 50% in maintenance costs. “It is not citizens or businesses who can act in place of the government, it takes provincial leadership to set a budget and set an example by decarbonizing its own infrastructure,” says Mr. St-Pierre.
Create momentum
The Trottier Family Foundation continues to invest at the intersection of climate and health. In particular, it has started a collaboration with Synergie Santé Environnement, a broker in environmental solutions. A grant is dedicated to calculating the carbon footprint of Montreal institutions such as the McGill University Health Center and several CIUSSS de Montreal. “We are sending the message that the government should have these GHG inventories,” adds Éric St-Pierre.
She also brought together a dozen other Canadian donors to put the subject on the agenda, hoping to create momentum in the philanthropic community, which she already sees emerging. One of the two co-presidents of the 3e edition of the Montreal Climate Summit — partly financed by the Trottier Foundation — is none other than the DD Mylène Drouin, director of public health for the Montreal region.
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