Virginia Mason is committed to preserving the natural environment for the health of our patients and future generations. In line with this commitment, we implemented a sustainable landscapes program at our downtown campus.

Native & Pollinator-friendly Planting

Native plants and animals are in distress — their habitats are rapidly shrinking with development. Pollinating insects native to this region, as well as honey bees, are stressed by a lack of food and diseases like Colony Collapse Disorder. These pollinators play a crucial role in our food system as they pollinate the flowers that mature into fruits and vegetables.

Virginia Mason is supporting a sustainable food system by providing food for pollinators. In our downtown campus, we implemented a policy that all new plantings must be made up of 80-percent native or pollinator friendly plants. Since we implemented this policy on campus, our team has noticed native bees foraging in our plantings.

Pesticide and Herbicide Free

Pesticides and herbicides were created to manage harmful pests and weeds. Unfortunately, much of what is sprayed reaches a destination other than the target, which negatively impacts the ecosystem and human health. Virginia Mason is proud to maintain a pesticide and herbicide-free hospital campus.

Water Conservation

Water is a valuable resource vital to human and ecological health. To reduce the use of water at our main campus, we use drought tolerant plants in our landscape and irrigate only on the hottest summer days or as plant health requires.