Barton taking action to cut water use
Barton Heath in May started removing sod from many areas, including near the Alpine Building. Photo/Provided
By Kathryn Reed
Hospitals use huge quantities of water – from old sterilizers operating 24 hours a day to non-aerated faucets to old toilets. And then there is landscaping.
According to the EPA, the median hospital uses 315 gallons of water per bed per day. Hospitals have historically been near the top for water consumption based on square footage at 55 gallons per square foot. Only senior care facilities and hotels ranked higher, according to the EPA.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Environmental Protection Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency, and American Water Works Association put out a report titled “When Every Drop Counts: Protecting Public Health During Drought Conditions”. It says, “Hospitals, clinics, and other health care facilities oftentimes rely heavily on water to ensure the well-being of their patients. Water is used for drinking, sanitation, patient care, equipment sterilization, HVAC systems, and other essential functions throughout these facilities.”
Barton Memorial Hospital is no different than other entities when it comes to needing to use water for all of the above-mentioned reasons. However, the South Lake Tahoe medical facility it trying to curtail its usage as California deals with being in year four of a drought.
“Water plays an intricate part in our wellbeing which is why we, the staff and physicians at Barton Health, are doing our part to reduce our water usage and protect Tahoe’s natural beauty. We value our residents, visitors, and wildlife, and want to be part of the solution to help alleviate our state’s water crisis,” Rich Belli, director of facilities, told Lake Tahoe News.
Mulch was put down and native plants are growing where sod once was. Photo/Provided
In 2014, Barton cut its water usage by more than 28 percent compared to the previous year.
Actions taken this year include:
· Replacing remaining standard toilets with low flow toilets at all Barton Health facilities.
· Decreasing sprinkler usage and working with South Tahoe Public Utility District’s turf buyback program to remove 8,000 square feet of lawn in various areas throughout the hospital campus and replace it with drought tolerant landscape.
· Turning off outside water features.
· Minimizing use of bottled water by serving pitchers of water at catering events and to patients unless medically necessary.
Barton Memorial Hospital, Thank you for taking action to reduce water use! The turf buy back program thru STPUD is a big water saver. Plant some drought resistant plants or some edibles.Take care, OLS
GOOD! It’s a start, hopefully much more businesses and even more homeowners will follow suit.
We are at that point.
We all need to dump the concept that “green is good” unless you are in a place like Wisconsin where natural precipitation is sufficient to keep it that way.
In the US, far too many of us went to live in desert or near desert places like Southern CA or Las Vegas, but still had to have our golf courses and large lawns.
I expect if ( a very big if) we return to “normal” runoff levels, many will turn the sprinklers back on. That will be too bad.
Watering while it’s raining or snowing? Yes, I have seen this happen all around me. Some people do not care that we are in a drought and refuse to believe it despite the facts.
Wake up and remember this is the lightest winter I’ve ever seen. Hardly any snow pack, drying streams, a shrinking lake and resevoirs off the hill at 50%percent or less of capacity.
I applaud Barton or any resident who tries to conserve water, even if it’s in a small way. Thank you, OLS
I was vacationing at a beach down south recently. Seems the people in Ventura County have no problem wasting water. I saw several people watering down their driveways to get the sand off….(seriously?!!) So. Cal needs to figure out something to collect water they now let flow into the ocean and stop wasting OUR Sierra water they so depend on.
Kitty couldn’t you have just stayed down there? The town would rejoice.
I was walking through the Patrica ST neck of the woods today and saw some extremely green lawns and yards, as in over watering with a heavy hand. I would like to have my dried up landscape look as green as that, however I can’t to justify a clear conscious. All I can say I’m doing my part and play by all the rules, apparently some aren’t.
Why do so many people have an issue with capturing more water with reservoirs and thermalitos? Out water storage in California was built for 15 million people and now we have 30 million. You can only make so many slices of the pie before you have to get another pie. Simple rationing is not going to cure our water shortage. Reservoirs add recreation, clean power and a place to store water that is now running out to the ocean. What is the problem?
Walter: some people care more about the environment than themselves. But you wouldn’t understand that concept. Do some research on reservoirs before you pipe up with pithy blather. A pox on you.
Liberule,
Is that how you answer by name calling and no information or anything to support your side of the issue? Are we never going to build more water storage? Is Jerry blBrowns tunnel going to solve water issues in the north part of the state and not cause any environmental issues? I have done my research and plenty of it and we need more water storage in our state. Without it the environment you claim to love will burn and dry up, just like what is happening all over the west right now. You offer no solution other than do with less.
Walter: Where in that post did I call you names? Seems you’re a bit of a sensitive guy. I do have a solution. We can start by sending all the illegals back to Mexico. I know, I know I’m SO racist. Give me a break. I love all these people who say that from inside their gated white communities. Go live in Santa Ana or East LA. No? Why not?
Walter, it seems that we need water to fill all of the reservoirs sitting there with little water in them. How will more reservoirs provide more water? We need to fill the reservoirs we already have, which means we need percipitation and no one can make that happen.