ASHRAE and the American Society for Healthcare Engineering have released for public review a proposed standard for the design, construction and operation of green health-care facilities. ASHRAE/ASHE Standard 189.3P: Standard for the Design, Construction and Operation of Sustainable, High-Performance Health-Care Facilities is open for public comment through Jan. 21.

The draft standard contains procedures, methods and documentation requirements for the design, construction and operation of sustainable health-care buildings. It would apply to patient-care and related support areas within health-care facilities, including hospitals, nursing homes and licensed outpatient facilities, according to ASHRAE.

Among other things, the standard covers site sustainability, water-use efficiency, energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality and the building’s impact on the atmosphere. In addition, a special section addresses the emissions, effluents and pollution commonly discharged from health-care facilities. However, specific ventilation requirements for such facilities are addressed in ANSI/ASHRAE/ASHE Standard 170: Ventilation of Health-Care Facilities.

More information on the proposed standard is available at www.ashrae.org/publicreviews.