Stericycle Becomes Member Of Practice Greenhealth

LAKE FOREST, Ill., April 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Stericycle, Inc. (NASDAQ: SRCL) today announced it has become a member of Practice Greenhealth, a nonprofit organization spearheading positive environmental stewardship and best practices in the healthcare community.

Stericycle also announced it is one of 15 members of the Practice Greenhealth (PGH) Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP) Business Leadership Coalition leaders.  This group assists healthcare facilities in greening supply chains and purchasing products which focus on processes that are less hazardous to the environment.

As a member of the EPP Coalition's Greening the Supply Chain Initiative, Stericycle is helping to shift the health care market to more environmentally preferable services for managing all waste streams. Hospital senior leadership is ultimately responsible for all waste from the time it's generated to the point that it is safely and legally disposed.  Leaders who make a commitment to uphold water and air quality are protecting the environment from hospital waste.  Approaches include reducing drugs from the public water system, using reusable sharps containers to minimize landfill use, and increasing recycling percentages across all waste streams.

More than ever hospital leaders are prioritizing and implementing sustainable practices to minimize their environmental footprint and comply with complex regulatory standards.  As the American healthcare sector accounts for 8% of the total U.S. carbon footprint(1), these leaders are acutely aware of the environmental and economic impact of becoming  more green.

Evidence of this priority is seen from a Practice Greenhealth survey of 1,550 hospital leaders in 2009 that found 67% have a committee in place to lead their facility in environmental sustainability planning. Additionally, data from 2009-2010 Stericycle Lunch & Learn education seminars, found that 54% of 1,200 respondents representing 600 hospitals had established formal green teams.

Many healthcare providers are choosing to reduce, reuse, and recycle waste. Stericycle partners with hospitals by first evaluating 10 different waste streams to assess reduction opportunities. With up to 80% of waste streams being highly regulated, Stericycle works to ensure hospitals are compliant with current regulations and standards.

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