Use of water in healthcare

How Healthcare Uses Water – page on the website of Practice Greenhealth with statistics on water use in health care facilities and links at the bottom to further information on how to reduce water use in hospital and other medical environments.

Healthcare facilities consistently fall within the top ten consumers of water in the community, according to the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority. The healthcare sector employs many water-use functions including food service, laundry, water purification, process water for vacuum systems, cooling towers, boilers, image processing for x-rays, sterilizing, as well as hygiene practices for patients, staff, and facilities.   …

…  Hospitals that have conducted successful water use reduction programs have been able to reduce water use by approximately 20 to 30 percent. For large facilities, this can translate to over $100,000 per year savings in water, sewer and energy costs.

Chart shown above is from the EPA’s WaterSense page on Hospitals which also links to strategies for reducing water use.