ABSTRACT
Healthcare institutions strive to treat or prevent illness and to improve the general health of the population. Healthcare institutions such as a general hospital not only use large amounts of a vast array of resources such as electric power, gas, water, and so forth—they generate greenhouse gases. The largest uses of water in hospitals are for cooling equipment; the direct use from plumbing fixtures; landscaping; and medical processing/rinsing. In 2013, the United States (US) healthcare sector was responsible for a significant percentage of national air pollution emissions including acid rain, greenhouse gas emissions, smog formation, criteria air pollutants, stratospheric ozone depletion, and carcinogenic and non-ca rcinogenic air toxins. Incineration used to be the predominant disposal method for regulated medical waste. Dioxins and their related compounds are extremely toxic substances, producing negative effects in humans and animals at extremely low doses.
