Ambulance Service Wins 'Green' Award
Tuesday, 13 December, 2011
Alexis Keech, Environmental and Sustainability Manager at Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust at the Energy Saving Trust Fleet Hero 2011 Awards
Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust has won an award for its environmentally-friendly work and its commitment and dedication to reducing carbon emissions.
The Trust won the Leadership Award at the Energy Saving Trust Fleet Hero 2011 Awards in November in London at a ceremony attended by Norman Baker MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport.
The Energy Saving Trust Fleet Hero Awards highlight public and private organisations which are successfully reducing their carbon footprints and lowering their fuel bills through fleet travel and transport policies.
The judges chose Yorkshire Ambulance Service, which provides 24-hour emergency and healthcare services to a population over five million, for the award for its wide range of 'green' initiatives and said that the Trust provides an example of impressive leadership within the emergency services.
It highlighted that the Trust, which has a fleet of almost 1,500 vehicles which cover over 25 million miles per year, has:
. become the first ambulance service in the country to begin a Carbon Management Programme
. started eco-driving skills training for all new staff in its emergency and non-emergency services
. identified the potential to reduce the carbon emissions of its fleet by at least 30%, far exceeding the legal requirements.
Alexis Keech, Environmental and Sustainability Manager at Yorkshire Ambulance Service, helped the Trust to become the first ambulance service in the UK to participate in the Carbon Trust Carbon Management Programme. She said: "We are delighted to have won this award and I would like to thank everyone at the Trust for helping to make the initiatives we have implemented so successful.
"Due to the nature of the work of our Service, the impact on the environment is a high priority and the challenge to reduce carbon emissions is huge.
"So far, in a bid to help reduce fuel consumption and, in turn, reduce the carbon footprint of the Trust, we have taught our staff eco-driving techniques and are looking at purchasing frontline vehicles which are more economical and efficient. We will continue to find ways of reducing public spending on fuel and of becoming a greener, more efficient organisation."
Transport Minister Norman Baker MP said: "If the Government is to meet its carbon reduction targets we must decarbonise road transport and making fleet operations greener is a major part of that.
"So I am delighted to see such excellent progress in this area - big companies from both the private and public sectors have made huge strides in tackling this issue, using a range of measures such as reducing mileage, encouraging fuel efficient driving and using ultra low carbon vehicles. Not only is all this good for the environment - it makes economic sense too."
Yorkshire Ambulance Service's concerted efforts to reduce the Trust's carbon footprint have led to a wide range of awards, including Sustainability Team of the Year at the Business Green Leaders Awards and a Green Fleet Public Service Fleet Manager of the Year award.
