Green Procurement
Buy Smart using Green Procurement Practices
What is Green Procurement?
Green procurement means purchasing products and services that minimize environmental impacts. It incorporates human health and environmental concerns into the search for high quality products that have a low carbon footprint, reduced packaging, greater durability and a high recycled content.
This section deals primarily with internal operations - purchasing for your operational needs.
For information on green procurement as it relates to your customers, visit the supply chain management section of this site.
Why Green Procurement Makes Sense:
- Reduced waste generation.
- Lower waste management fees.
- Easier compliance with environmental regulations.
- Improved image and brand.
- Improved employee and community health.
- Reduced carbon footprint.
Three key areas in green procurement:
Step 1: Planning and Purchasing
Take the 3Rs approach to your planning and purchasing:
- Establish criteria for purchasing environmentally responsible products. Consider:
- Minimal use of virgin material in the product or service lifecycle.
- Replacement of disposables with reusable or recyclables.
- Minimal environmental impact from the entire product or service lifecycle.
- Minimal or no packaging (choose bulk over individually packaged products).
- Durability and easy maintenance.
- Waste disposal options.
- Include environmental outcomes in procurement contracts.
Potential Suppliers Checklist
Look for the following when choosing suppliers:
- ISO 14001 certification. See certification requirements here.
- Ability to reduce packaging and take back shipping materials.
- Compliance with your environmental specifications.
- Assurance that products and / or services are eco-friendly.
- Inclusion of environmental outcomes in their procurement contracts.
Minimize packaging in your products and shipping materials:
- Choose bulk over individually packaged products. This cuts down on packaging and costs.
- Work with your suppliers to eliminate excess packaging in each shipment. Ensure that leftover packaging can be properly recycled.
- Set up reusable packaging programs with suppliers.
- Recycle any excess packaging whenever possible.
- Request that all paperwork be processed electronically.
Did you know?
Many packages that have blister pack wrapping for ‘protection’ can’t be recycled. This plastic is very hard to regulate and many recyclers will not accept it into their systems. What a waste!
Step 3: Maintaining and Disposing
- Repair or refurbish equipment when possible.
- Design modular store fixtures that can be re-faced instead of replaced when it’s time to change your store’s appearance. Minimal cost and minimal waste.
- Consider the following means of product 'disposal':
- Return-to-vendor
- Choose suppliers that will take back their products for recycling. Many computer and imaging equipment suppliers will take back their products for reuse, disassembly and recycling.
- Reuse
- Donate the goods to charity.
- Recycle
- Talk to your waste/recycling contractors about what can and cannot be recycled.
- Return-to-vendor
Note: If you generate hazardous waste, dispose of it correctly and legally.
For information on service providers, visit our resources section.
Check out the following resources on green procurement:
