Public Health System Energy Sustainability

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS (15:02): My question is to the Minister for Health and Wellbeing. In light of the commitment by this government to support renewable and sustainable energy sources here in South Australia, will the minister update the council on sustainability in the public health system?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (15:02): I thank the honourable member for his question. Having already referred to the four green pillars, I do not want to add further to my green credentials, but I feel I must. The Liberal Party—again I want to preach on about Liberal Party values—believes in environmental responsibility because it not only makes environmental sense, it also makes financial sense. That is why, before the pandemic—

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. S.G. WADE: —even before the COVID-19 pandemic, this government announced the installation of solar panels—

The Hon. J.E. Hanson interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order, the Hon. Mr Hanson!

The Hon. S.G. WADE: —at the Flinders Medical Centre, the Lyell McEwin Hospital and The Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Collectively, the reductions in emissions from these panels will have the same effect as taking 500 cars off the road.

Highlighting the other dimension, the financial sustainability, that same initiative will also save taxpayers over $600,000 each year. But we are going further. As part of the planning for the world-class new Women's and Children's Hospital, the decision has been made that the hospital will be entirely electric—an Australian first. No fossil fuels will be used on site, with all energy being electrical and sourced from our state's electric grid, which sources much of its energy from renewable sources.

This commitment to sustainable infrastructure is further supported by initiatives supporting a greener hospital. The new Women's and Children's Hospital is being designed to be constructed with materials that are low emission and, where possible, locally manufactured. Recycled rainwater will be used outdoors on the site for landscaping and within the hospital for some building services, such as flushing toilets. Maximising the amount of natural light through architectural design will decrease the amount of energy required for artificial lighting during the day.

To put this in context, the decision to design and construct the hospital with these initiatives compares to taking around 700 cars off the road. This is another example of the Marshall Liberal government putting South Australia first in the nation, delivering better services and reducing the impact of those services on both our environment and also our taxpayers.