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Combating climate change with precision

The newly developed_{CO2 calculator} from the University Medical Center Freiburg helps hospitals to calculate their_{CO2 balance} and take targeted measures to reduce it.

As particularly energy-intensive facilities, hospitals have a great responsibility to consistently improve their_{CO2 balance}. But what are the most important factors and where are new, more climate-friendly solutions most urgently needed? Until now, the emissions of hospitals could only be recorded inadequately. This is why the University Medical Center Freiburg, together with the Öko-Institut e.V. and funded by the German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU), has developed a_{CO2 calculator}.

With the open access tool published in May, hospitals can create their_{carbon footprint} in detail and in accordance with international standards. "Hospitals can only make concrete changes to their_{CO2 emissions} if they know the key parameters. With our_{CO2 calculator}, we create transparency and enable comparisons between hospitals," says Professor Dr. Frederik Wenz, Chief Medical Director of the University Medical Center Freiburg. "While our internal energy figures are very precise, very few pharmaceutical companies and other suppliers were able to provide us with information about the carbon footprint of their own products. There is still a long way to go to achieve a complete carbon footprint," adds Professor Dr. Andy Maun, Director of the Institute of General Medicine and CAFOGES project manager.

Compact carbon footprint

And what does the University Medical Center Freiburg's_{carbon footprint} look like? In 2019, the year in which the data for the_{CO2 calculator} was collected, emissions from ongoing hospital operations amounted to 104,000 tons of_{CO2 equivalents}. With 1,616 beds, this corresponded to_{CO2 emissions of} 64.36 tons of_CO2 per hospital bed. At around 53,000 tons_{of CO2 equivalents}, the largest share is generated in the production, transport and use of goods and services purchased by the University Hospital. The in-house production of heating, cooling and electricity used at the hospital generates around 33,000 tons of_{CO2 equivalents}. Around 5,000 tons of emissions are attributable to patient transport. In addition, the production of district heating for other state institutions such as the University of Freiburg in the hospital's combined heat and power plant generates around 41,000 tons of greenhouse gases.