One of the UK’s top veterinary eye clinics has received further national recognition for its drive to go green.
Linnaeus-owned Veterinary Vision, which has three clinics in the north of England, has now earned a silver award from Investors in the Environment (iiE), just two years after receiving a bronze award.
iiE is a nationwide initiative that encourages firms to transform their working practices to introduce more environmentally-friendly, cleaner and more sustainable methods and systems.
Among the latest raft of sustainable measures at Veterinary Vision’s clinics in Penrith, Sunderland and Charnock Richard are an updated environmental policy, further education and enrolment of staff in green initiatives.
As a result, Veterinary Vision has seen some dramatic improvements, not least by reducing its electricity consumption by more than 15 per cent with multiple electricity-saving measures including LED lighting, solar panels and ready-boil taps.
The audit report also highlighted Veterinary Vision’s reduction of water consumption, estimated to be a saving of 316 cubic metres a year, which roughly equates to 2,000 bathtubs of water. This has been achieved through the installation of water saving devices across the three practices.
Meanwhile, the improved segregation of waste streams and revised information for staff has resulted in a 586kg reduction in clinical waste.
The savings equate to 14 tennis courts of surgical material and eight tennis courts of incontinence pads.
Lisa Holme, practice manager at Veterinary Vision, said: “We’ve been busy implementing even more environmentally-friendly changes at our three practices since initially earning the bronze iiE award.
“This silver accreditation is real proof the changes are having a significant impact across our three animal hospitals. However, we won’t rest on our laurels and the iiE green award is our next target, the highest level award it offers.”
Other silver winning initiatives at Veterinary Vision include litter picking initiatives, planting bio-diverse wild flowers and the installation of hedgehog houses, bug hotels and bird nesting boxes within the practice grounds.
Veterinary Vision is equipped for all types of ocular surgery with 11 veterinary ophthalmologists offering a vast range of experience and knowledge in small animal, and equine eye conditions.
For more information visit www.veterinaryvision.co.uk or search for Veterinary Vision on social media.
