WASTE HEAT FROM the Guinness brewery in Dublin could be used to heat the proposed new children’s hospital at the St James’s site.
The planning application for the €650 million hospital was lodged with An Bord Pleanala yesterday.
A feasibility study is being carried out to assess if excess heat produced by the Guinness brewery could be harnessed to heat the new hospital.
It could involve pumping hot water or steam from the brewery to the new hospital.
If found to be possible it could result in big savings.
The study is being carried out by Veolia, a leading environmental services company which develops ways to carefully manage energy and waste.
The study is currently under way however it is too early to produce any findings.
The design concept for the campus aims for it to be as environmentally friendly as possible.
The proposed new hospital will have thirteen wards providing 380 single in-patient rooms, with ensuite bathrooms and overnight beds for parents. Other family accommodation includes a 60-bed facility near the entrance.
There will also be 42 beds in the critical care unit and 18 neonatal critical care units.
The plan to build a new children’s hospital has been mired in controversy over the years as arguments were made as to where it should be located.
An Bord Pleanála previously refused permission for the facility at the Mater Hospital site in Dublin.
While some opposition groups have voiced their criticisms to the location, the Health Minster Leo Varadkar said the hospital will be “world class”.
“There’ll always be objections, there’s objections to somebody putting an extension onto their house. So I’ve no doubt there’ll be objections, and there’d be objections no matter where’s it’s located. But there’s also a huge amount of support behind it.”
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