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> Green Purchasing
> Green Claims
> Green Purchasing Policy
> Purchasing Criteria
> Purchasing Decision Making
Green Purchasing
More and more organisations are establishing environmental or green
purchasing policies and strategies. Such policies and strategies
are important for
the following reasons:
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Green procurement of products and services raises environmental
awareness, which in turn moves more people to buy more environmentally
sound
products.
-
Green procurement has potentially direct environmental benefits.
Fewer emissions, less waste and more efficient resources use.
-
An increase
in demand for greener products and services improves the market position
of suppliers.
- Demand for green products acts as an incentive for technological
development towards greener products.
Greener purchasing aims to avoid
unnecessary purchasing by:
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Reviewing the actual need of the product.
-
Seeking alternative goods
and services.
-
Purchasing a greener variant with comparable if not
better performance than a conventional choice.
Green claims –“sustainable forests”, “recyclable”, “earth
friendly”
An increasing number of products falsely claim that
they are “environmentally
friendly”. It is important to verify claims made by the manufacturer
and supplier.
-
Ensure you have written documentation that backs up the claims
of the supplier.
-
Ask when was their documentation and process last reviewed
and to what standard or accreditation.
-
Can you get a copy of their
environmental report or technical data?
Green
Purchasing Policy
Establish environmental purchasing policy and criteria
for products and services in contracts or in tender documents.
This ensures
that staff, customers and suppliers know what your minimum environmental
requirements are.
Such policy may look like this:
Green Purchasing Policy:
This (ORGANISATION) will give preference to purchasing environmentally
preferable products and services
that meet current performance, safety and regulatory requirements.
This
organisation
will continue to source and increase the purchase of products
and services that are deemed "Environmentally Preferable” as
set out in our Purchasing Criteria Document.
Purchasing
Criteria
Environmental Purchasing Criteria for products
and services.
Is it essential to buy the product - can it be leased
or rented?
Resource Use and Recycling
Does production/extraction
of the product cause ecological damage, such as loss of habitats or
damage to threatened
species? Are
there alternatives?
Is this a remanufactured product?
Can the product be re-used, refilled, recharged or
reconditioned to extend its life?
Can the item be easily upgraded by adding or replacing
a part?
Does the product have a recycled content? What
percentage?
Is the product accredited with a recognised environmental
standard?
Can the product be recycled easily (in the workplace
and/or local community)?
Hazardous content
Is the product or are its components
hazardous to humans and/or the wider environment? If yes, what are
the health and safety
implications and disposal requirements? Are there
any non-hazardous alternatives
available?
Are technical data sheets available?
Energy
Does the item use energy? (e.g. electrical appliances,
equipment, machinery, space heating or vehicles).
If so, is the item as energy efficient as the
alternatives?
Does the item have energy consumption data for
all operation modes?
Packaging
Can product packaging be reduced or eliminated?
Is packaging made of recycled material(s)?
Can packaging be re-used, recycled or returned?
Food
Can organically grown produce be purchased?
Has the food been genetically modified?
Transportation
Is the product locally manufactured and/or
locally supplied?
Does the supplier have a Green Transport
Plan for their operations?
Supplier
Environmetal reporting
Does the supplier have a company
Environmental Management System.
Does the supplier report on their
environmental performance against
set targets?
Purchasing - Decision Making
To implement an effective
Environmental Purchasing Policy use a step-by-step
approach to increase
your purchase
of greener
goods
and services.
It is important to raise awareness
with both current and new suppliers
and link
with other
organisations
in the
same sector.
Here are some options:
-
Focus on products or services within your company that have
the greatest environmental impact.
-
Examine products that would be highly
visible within your company; for example, stationery, or office
electrical equipment.
-
Integrate reused, refurbished, remanufactured and recycled-content
products into your operations wherever
possible.
-
Use greener products available through your existing suppliers,
such as energy saving office
equipment and biodegradable cleaning products.
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Support local manufacturing
efforts by purchasing at least a portion of your recycled products
from local manufacturers where they exist.
-
Actively encouraging suppliers to
provide products and services that have a minimum adverse
environmental impact, requesting suppliers to identify harmful processes and
materials in their
manufacturing processes.
Seek suppliers that
are working towards the phase out of such practices.
-
Remember it will not be
possible to purchase a green alternative for every product or
service. Compromise will be required. It is therefore important to address
the significant environmental
impacts of your
current purchasing policy.
-
Set
targets and dates to achieve changes in purchasing practice. (i.e.
all paper to be
of recycled content throughout the office by next financial quarter).
-
Work co-operatively
with other organisations to purchase environmentally. Network with
departments and neighbouring businesses. It is often possible to buy cheaper
in bulk. This can also
reduce packaging and transport impacts.
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