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 Hospitals and Pollution Prevention
This presentation was created to explain the basics of the Mercury Challenge Program. The entire presentation is twenty slides and explains things such as what the challenge is, goals, why take the challenge, how your hospital can participate, hints for developing your program, how to measure success and finally what the rewards of the program are.
Ohio EPA and Ohio Hospital Association Sign Pollution Prevention Agreement
Ohio EPA will work with OHA: The Ohio Hospital Association to reduce the generation of hospital waste, including mercury, which hospitals commonly have in thermometers, blood pressure monitors and other equipment. A formal agreement between the two organizations was signed as part of Ohio Pollution Prevention Week, September 20-24, 1999. The Ohio Healthy Hospitals Pollution Prevention Initiative is based on a federal agreement signed by U.S. EPA and the American Hospital Association. The goal of the program is to provide tools to support hospitals’ continued efforts to minimize the production of pollutants and reduce the amount of waste generated.
 
As part of the agreement, Ohio EPA and the OHA agree to create and implement programs to:
- virtually eliminate mercury-containing waste from the health care industry’s waste stream;
- reduce the total volume of waste created by the industry;
- educate health care professionals on pollution prevention activities they can implement;
- reduce the amount of chemicals used by the industry; and
- monitor the industry’s progress in implementing pollution prevention initiatives over time.
Recent Update
The Office of Pollution Prevention has a contract with CGH Environmental Strategies of Burlington, Vermont, who are nationally recognized experts in working with hospitals for waste reduction. CGH will work with Ohio EPA and the Ohio Hospital Association (OHA) to develop a program for waste reduction at Ohio hospitals to reduce mercury use, solid waste from various hospital operations, and certain chemicals. We expect to end up with a plan that Ohio EPA and the OHA will implement to help support the agreement between the U.S. EPA and the American Hospital Association to reduce waste over the next several years. CGH will survey Ohio hospitals and others outside the state, work closely with OPP and OHA and its members, and recommend the most feasible plan for Ohio.
For more information, contact Bill Narotski, Ohio EPA at 614-728-1264.
Hospital Pollution Prevention Documents
Hospital Pollution Prevention Links
Office of Compliance Assistance and Pollution Prevention
Ohio Environmental Protection Agency
P.O. Box 1049
Columbus, Ohio 43216-1049
Phone (614) 644-3469
Fax (614) 644-2807
Toll Free (800) 329-7518
E-Mail: p2mail@epa.state.oh.us
page last updated: March 30, 2007
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