The Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care has released its latest Green Best Practice Case Study, which offers solutions on how to make health service delivery more sustainable.

The coalition’s executive director, Linda Varangu, calls the study, “A great introduction to anyone in health care who is embarking upon an organic waste management program or is looking to modernize an existing protocol.”

The case study provides an introduction to the pros and cons of several organic waste management options, including on-site open-air composters, macerators and in-vessel composters. It looks at how six Ontario health care organizations, including the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario and St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, have implemented organic waste solutions.

Organic waste is both a burden and an expense for health care organizations. According to preliminary findings from the 2012 Ontario Hospital Association study, approximately 17 per cent of the hospital waste stream is organic waste. Ontario hospitals pay on average $96 per tonne for disposal. Currently, only two per cent of the province’s hospital organic waste is recycled or composted. The study’s author, Kent Waddington, estimates it costs approximately $3.6 million to dispose of organic waste each year.