When the $300 million
new East Wing building at
Taranaki Base Hospital is
completed in 2023, the region
will boast the first 5-star
‘Greenstar’ certified public
hospital in the country.
It will be more than the building that
will be sustainable, however. For the first
time, sustainability is being championed
throughout the organisation from policy,
to processes and people – thanks to a
long-standing partnership.
Hospitals are among the largest users
of water, energy, and generators of waste
in the regions they operate, and Taranaki
Base Hospital is no exception – until now.
In a country where businesses and
individuals are reducing, reusing and
recycling like never before, it seems
inconceivable that until recently the
Taranaki District Health Board didn’t
recycle or have plans for its general waste,
or energy use. It didn’t have any formalised
sustainability policy or strategy, let alone
a dedicated sustainability lead to drive
improvements and capture data on the
hospital’s impact on the world around it.
Understandably, a publicly-funded
hospital’s primary role is the healthcare
of the region’s residents and Government
funding reflects that. While the
new hospital building, to house the
Emergency Department, Intensive
Care Unit, Laboratory, Radiology and
Maternity services, is being designed
to be environmentally sustainable,
reducing greenhouse gas emissions and
energy costs, there isn’t the budget for
designing and implementing the likes of
sustainability policies or processes. Adrian
Sole, chairperson of the Taranaki Health
Foundation, which fundraises on behalf of
the community to deliver services and new
technology over and above Government
funding provided to the Taranaki DHB,
says there was a glaring need.
“Locally, we previously could only make
an educated guess at consumption, use
and impact of the Taranaki DHB on
the environment as there had not been
an in-depth audit undertaken until
recently. In the early stages of planning
and discovery, we understood we would
literally be starting at ground zero as there
was nothing formal taking place at the
hospital to promote sustainability. We are
inspired by the fact that there is significant
opportunity to build not only a sustainable
hospital that will provide healthierKeen to continue its long partnership
with the Taranaki Health Foundation,
New Plymouth’s Corteva Agriscience is
investing in the Sustainability 20/21
Project – a programme to encourage
sustainability/Pūmoutanga in healthcare
at the Taranaki DHB. Encompassing
three focus areas – policy, practice
and people – the goal is to accelerate
sustainable practice within the Taranaki
DHB as it develops and builds the
country’s first 5-star, Greenstar rated
public hospital.
"The Sustainability 20/21 Project is
well aligned with Corteva's sustainability
goals, so it's a very good fit for us,"
Corteva Agriscience supply chain leader,
New Zealand-Australia, Andrew Syme, says.
“The Taranaki Health Foundation does great
work with projects that have a wide benefit
in the community, where our employees
and their families live and work, and is
aligned with Corteva’s purpose and values
around enriching lives,” Andrew says.
While sustainability is about reducing
waste and emissions, it’s also about people,
Andrew says.
“It’s engaging with and empowering
communities to create their own
sustainability activities, and to create a
better future for generations to come. This
is where this connection works really well.”
A component of the partnership
between Corteva and the Taranaki Health
Foundation is volunteering.
“Corteva has launched a programme
that provides our employees with paid
leave to volunteer and support community
initiatives the company is engaged with.
We are looking forward to working with
the Foundation to enable our employees
to be involved with this sustainability
initiative,” Andrew says.
And there are plenty of sustainable
projects that Corteva’s employees could
get involved with. On Taranaki Base
Hospital campus’ western boundary
lies an area of native bush. Predator
trapping has already begun among
the regenerating flora and fauna,
says Taranaki DHB sustainability
lead Maria Cashmore.
“One of the projects is to protect that bush,
which is home to kereru, silver eye and tui.
This special place is amazing. I’ve never
seen a hospital which actually has native
bush,” Maria says.
The development of a ‘healing garden’
on an unused piece of land on the
hospital campus – an equity project codesigned
with local Māori – is also in the
pipeline. The garden would be built on
sustainable practices, from composting
food waste from the hospital, through
to growing food. Adrian Sole says the
partnership between Corteva and the
Taranaki Health Foundation will go
beyond helping the Taranaki DHB
achieve its sustainability goals.
“We believe this plan will set the direction
for change, identify best practice and
engage champions to lead and role-model
a new way of working and living this
decade,” he says.
environments, saving money on energy and
water costs, but will also boost employee
satisfaction and productivity, reduce staff
turnover and improve recovery times for
patients,” Adrian says.