Eleven hospitals recognised as ‘green’

PETALING JAYA (April 8): Eleven hospital projects have been certified as green in March under the GBI Hospital Tool, which was launched last year.

Green Building Index Accreditation Panel (GBIAP) chairman Chan Seong Aun said the GBI Hospital Tool covers six key criteria: Energy Efficiency, Indoor Environmental Quality, Sustainable Site Planning and Management, Materials and Resources, Water Efficiency, and Innovation.

Both existing hospital buildings and new constructions can be accredited under the tool.

“A green and resource-efficient hospital could promote public health by continuously reducing its impact to the environment. It also recognises the connection between human health and the environment, and demonstrates that understanding through its operations, governance and strategy,” he said at the Green Hospital Seminar 2016 yesterday.

Chan noted that a lot of the focus is on greening commercial buildings (such as malls and hotels) and residential homes. However, many are unaware that the healthcare industry is yet another sector that negatively impacts the environment.

“Ironically, the trillion-dollar healthcare sector is working hard to save people from diseases attributed to environmental factors, but in parallel is unintentionally contributing to the world’s carbon footprint,” he added.

Coating solutions provider Nippon Paint Malaysia Group collaborated with Green Building Index Sdn Bhd to organise Green Hospital Seminar 2016. The event was aimed at educating and engaging various industry stakeholders on creating awareness of green hospitals, which could help to reduce the damaging impact on the environment.

Notable speakers include veterans such as Chen Thiam Leong, co-chairman of GBIAP; Von Kok Leong who presented a paper entitled “A Case Study of Amanjaya Hospital”; and Richard Seow, chief technology officer of Nippon Paint South East Asia Group, who shared his experience about the role of functional coatings within a sustainability-themed building.

Chen said the initiative of greening a building has been a challenge as it is always prioritised lower compared with other needs.

“With the extension of incentives for green technology initiatives to 2020 and amplified educational efforts, I am confident that there will be more urgency on the need to protect the surrounding environment and greater awareness that cost savings can be simultaneously achieved,” he noted.

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