Think Green; Act Green – Procurement
Procurement
Procurement refers to the acquisition of office supplies and equipment, as well as contracts with service providers. ‘Green procurement’ therefore relates to efforts made by the NRTEE to incorporate sustainable development principles in the purchasing of goods and services.
In 2010, the NRTEE initiated a new process to track “green” vs. “non-green” purchases. At this point, the information is collected only in terms of its dollar value. We recognize that this does not necessarily provide a full picture of our green procurement achievements and we will look for ways to refine this process. The data for 2010 is shown below; this will provide a baseline metric for tracking purposes in the future. One of the NRTEE’s planned activities for the upcoming year is to review the “non-green” purchases and assess these in terms of opportunities to improve our “green” vs. “non-green” procurement balance.
General Policies
The NRTEE strives to:
- Meet or exceed the relevant green procurement guidelines specified by the Public Works and Government Services Canada’s (PWGSC) Office of Greening of Government Operations (OGGO).
- Procure products or services that comply with federally regulated certification requirements; where these do not exist, substitute other recognized certification program requirements.
- Purchase low impact products, even if less expensive materials are available, within reason.
- Where appropriate, incorporate green requirements into the supplier selection process operations.
NRTEE Practice
| Item |
NRTEE Practice |
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Paper Products |
Uses only paper with post-consumer recycled content or with fibre content certified to one of the Sustainable Forest Management standards (FSC, CSA or SFI). Current stock is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified 100% post-consumer content (exceeds OGGO recommended guideline) |
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Cleaning Materials |
Uses products that carry federally-recognized or equivalent certifications (e.g. Ecologo) |
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Toner Cartridges |
Buys from a distributor of re-manufactured toner cartridges and follows return/pickup policy |
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Miscellaneous Office Supplies |
Uses environmentally preferred products where available (e.g. refillable pens) |
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Fixture/Furniture/Carpeting |
Uses environmentally preferred products whenever available |
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IT Equipment |
When purchasing new equipment, uses the most energy efficient products available for the application. Laptop and desktop computers meet Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) Silver or Gold requirements. |
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Printing Houses |
Requires printing houses to conform with the Environmental Choice Program certification requirements; requires recycled content in paper stock; vegetable oil based-inks. This conforms with OGGO guidelines. |
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Hotels and Meeting Facilities |
Uses facilities that carry federally-recognized or equivalent certifications such as Audobon, Green Leaf, etc.) |
Looking forward
The NRTEE will continue to evaluate its procurement practices through an assessment of various eco-logo and labelling standards.
The NRTEE has developed a method for tracking and evaluating progress with its green procurement practices as a measure of success.
© 2013