Why it matters (facts & figures)

• The NHS produces 3% of all UK carbon dioxide emissions. 2015 data showed that the NHS carbon footprint in England is  22.8 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents and has seen a reduction of 11% between 2007-2015
• Inhalation anaesthetics, such as nitrous oxide, isoflurane, desflurane, and sevoflurane are greenhouse gases and contribute to climate change. These medical gases account for 5% of the carbon dioxide equivalence emissions of acute NHS hospitals
• The relative contribution of a greenhouse gas towards global warming may be described by a number of methods. The most frequently reported relating to anaesthesia is the Global Warming Potential, or GWP, which is a measure of the relative contribution of mass of inhalational anaesthetic agents (IAA) to an equivalent mass of CO2
• As the global warming effect of IAAs decreases over time due to atmospheric/UV degradation, GWPs are usually appended by a number indicating the GWP over a time period in years
• The GWPs of the inhalational agents can be seen in the table below:

• The global warming effects of IAAs may be ameliorated through use of low-flow anaesthesia, , choice of volatile agents with lower GWPs and minimising the use of nitrous oxide.  Technologies for capture of scavenged gases are also currently in evolution 
• You can download an anaesthetic gases calculator here
• The NHS produced just less than 590,000 tonnes of waste in 2016/17 representing around 2% of all industrial and commercial waste in England
• Each operating theatre produces around 2300Kg anaesthetics waste and 230Kg sharps waste per annum, approximately 40% of which could be reclassified as domestic waste or recycling with significant environmental and financial benefits. 

You might also be interested in: