A pledge to plant a native tree for every Rayner IOL used in New Zealand to reduce cataract surgery’s carbon footprint has exceeded expectations by nearly 60% in one year.
The goal was 1,500 trees, but the total number planted from June 2023 is 2,391, equating to 529 tonnes of CO₂ removed from the atmosphere after 50 years, said Medix21’s Camille Furnandiz, who runs the programme with Kiwi-based CO₂ mitigation organisation Trees That Count. “Medix21 is thrilled with the success of the Medix21 Green programme. Not only is each tree helping to counteract the carbon footprint of a cataract surgery, it improves water quality, protects land from erosion, enhances biodiversity and creates shared green spaces. It feels good to be giving back to the environment for generations to come.”
UK-based company Eden Seven, part of the Cambridge Management Consultancy group, calculates that 1 tonne of CO₂ is equivalent to 4,230km driven by an average vehicle, 120,000 smartphone charges, 500L of diesel consumed, or just over 0.5kg of HCFC-22 (commonly used in domestic and commercial refrigeration and air conditioning) released into the atmosphere.
