Allina Health earns top marks for environmental sustainability

• In a first for the healthcare system, Abbott Northwestern Hospital earned an Emerald award, highlighting it as among the top 20% of hospitals in the nation with advanced sustainability programs.
• All other Allina Health hospital campuses earned Greenhealth Partner for Change honors: Buffalo Hospital, Cambridge Medical Center, Faribault Medical Center, Mercy Hospital, Mercy Hospital – Unity Campus, New Ulm Medical Center, Owatonna Hospital, River Falls Area Hospital, St. Francis Regional Medical Center, United Hospital and United Hospital – Hastings Regina Campus. Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute - Golden Valley also earned a Greenhealth Partner for Change Award. The Partner for Change Award recognizes superior performance in environmental sustainability, covering a range of different sustainability programs and activities.
• At the system level, Allina Health earned the System for Change award, highlighting the system’s sustainability work across multiple facilities.

“Part of providing expert care to our patients is doing all we can to ensure we are reducing our contribution to environmental harms that can impact the health of the communities we serve,” said Suzanne Savanick Hansen, Allina Health’s manager of Environmental Sustainability.

Allina Health has an ambitious climate action plan and is actively working to implement a new recycling policy at all sites. In 2024, Allina Health sent 329 tons of food waste to a hog farmer instead of the incinerator, and the health care system donated 72 tons of medical supplies to Matter who will send them to medical sites around the world.

The health system has Green Teams at most of its sites working tirelessly to create programs that address sustainability issues. They implement new earth-friendly initiatives addressing waste and energy reduction and host educational events to get more people involved. Examples of their work include:

• Collecting plastic bags and turning them into park benches in Wright County Parks.
• Participating in Meals on Wheels to ensure seniors have nutritious meals while decreasing the number of cars on the road.
• Reducing the incineration of trace chemotherapy bins at River Falls Area Hospital.
• Purchasing renewable electricity from municipal utilities. Those sites include St. Francis Regional Medical Center, River Falls Area Hospital and Buffalo Hospital.

“Our Green Teams are incredible. It is nice to see a national organization recognizing their innovative work,” said Hansen. “The awards and benchmarks from Practice Greenhealth show us where our programs are strong and where we can stand to improve.”

Systemwide, Allina Health is actively striving to achieve its objectives of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 and reaching net zero emissions by 2050. These goals align with the international Health Care Climate Challenge.

The Practice Greenhealth Environmental Excellence Awards recognize health care facilities across the country that have accomplished groundbreaking sustainability initiatives and place a strong focus on environmental stewardship. Allina Health’s award-winning sustainability initiatives span many different areas, including waste reduction and recycling, energy efficiency, purchasing and sustainable landscaping.

Allina Health is dedicated to the prevention and treatment of illness and enhancing the greater health of individuals, families and communities throughout Minnesota and western Wisconsin. A nonprofit health care system, Allina Health cares for patients from beginning to end-of-life through its 90+ clinics, 12 hospital campuses, 13 retail pharmacies, and many specialty care centers and specialty medical services, home care, and emergency medical transportation services. Learn more at allinahealth.org and join us on Facebook, X, Instagram and LinkedIn.