Aspirus Health starts its sustainable fleet journey, introduces first all-electric vehicle to reduce its carbon footprint

WAUSAU, Wis. – Aspirus Health recently added its first all-electric vehicle (EV) to its fleet of company vehicles in Wausau. It arrived November 30 and is being used to transport lab specimens between Aspirus Wausau’s testing center and regional lab.

“The EV can travel up to 259 miles on a full charge and produces zero direct emissions of air pollutants and greenhouse gases,” said Laurie Thompson, Laboratory Outreach Manager at Aspirus Wausau. “Adding this vehicle is just the start of our journey. We are very excited to begin transitioning our courier fleet to hybrid and electric models.”

Gasoline-powered vehicles produce direct emissions – through the tailpipe, through fuel evaporation and during fueling – and are also responsible for carbon dioxide emissions related to its fuel source. Lower gasoline use in Aspirus’ service region has direct air quality and health benefits for those living in our region.

The EV is also cheaper to own and operate than a gas-powered vehicle when comparing fuel and oil-change costs.

“We plan to transition our fleet of vehicles to alternative fuel, including fully electric vehicles, at a rate of 3-5 vehicles per year as market availability increases,” said Gary Rakes, Aspirus VP – Chief Supply Chain Officer. “Eighty-plus EV models are expected to hit the market in 2022!”

As a leader in the communities it serves, Aspirus Health is committed to being economically, socially and environmentally responsible.

“The addition of an all-electric vehicle to our fleet supports our Aspirus Sustainability Initiative and helps move us toward achieving our goal of reducing the Aspirus system’s carbon footprint (scope 1 and 2) by 80 percent and our energy costs by 50 percent by 2030,” said Jeanine Knapp, Aspirus System Sustainability Coordinator.

The Aspirus Sustainability Initiative was established in 2018 as a coordinated, strategic effort to identify and implement sustainability initiatives across the Aspirus Health system, serving Wisconsin and Upper Michigan, with the aim of improving the lives of patients and the health of communities.

###

Aspirus Health is a non-profit, community-directed health system based in Wausau, Wisconsin. Its 8,700 employees are focused on improving the health and well-being of people throughout Wisconsin and Upper Michigan. Aspirus serves communities through four hospitals in Michigan and six hospitals in Wisconsin, 50 clinics, home health and hospice care, pharmacies, critical care and air-medical transport, medical goods, nursing homes and a broad network of physicians. Aspirus has been recognized for three consecutive years by IBM Watson Health as a Top 15 Health System in its annual study identifying the top-performing health systems in the country. For more information, visit aspirus.org.