Solar Farm

In October 2021, the health board hit the headlines by owning the first solar farm in the UK to directly power a hospital.

The facility, based in nearby Brynwhilach Farm, is generating a third of Morriston Hospital’s power.

In its first two years of operation, it delivered a cost-avoidance of £1.8m in electricity bills.

Since then, its success and size has grown even more. The solar farm has benefited from a 1MW extension – taking its generation of power to 5MW – while a newly-installed battery means it can store any excess solar power generated on the brightest days, for use after the sun sets.

GreenED

A designated team within Morriston Hospital’s Emergency Department is looking at the carbon and cost implications of the methods and equipment it currently uses to see if there are greener and better ways to deliver this care.

The GreenED team has already identified a number of significant changes that could be made, such as a reduction in cannulation usage and utilising QR codes to cut down on paper leaflets where possible.

It is also looking potentially swapping its use of inhalers and pain relief methods.

Cae Felin Community Supported Agriculture

A seven-acre site owned by Swansea Bay University Health Board is leased to not-for-profit organisation Cae Felin Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).

The site produces fruit, vegetables and other crops and has a long-term goal of supplying nearby Morriston Hospital with products for patient meals.

Aside from food, the site allows volunteers to reconnect with nature and allow wildlife to thrive.

It has also been used by health board services as a holistic form of rehabilitation for patients as it can prove a perfect setting outside of the hospital to provide treatment.

Theatres Shutdown Check

A simple, yet effective move by the health board’s Theatres team has resulted in considerable energy and financial savings by turning off specialist equipment when they are not in use.

Hospital operating theatres are highly specialised areas. They utilise powerful, high turnover ventilation systems, high-level lighting and many electrical devices including anaesthetic machines with gas scavenging pumps and computers.

To combat the rising cost of electricity and to reduce the energy used by the health board, an ‘elective theatres shutdown check’ has been created by the anaesthetic team.

Analysis of 123 computers, anaesthetic machines and anaesthetic gas scavenging devices within the 20 operating theatres in Morriston Hospital calculated a potential annual saving of £26,000. In terms of carbon emissions, it equates to 77 return visits from Land’s End to John O’Groats in an average car.

To find out more about our sustainable work, follow this link to access the environment section of our website.