# Presentation: 345082

## Environmentally Preferable Purchasing at the U.S. Department of Energy

**Environmentally Preferable Purchasing ****at the U.S. Department of Energy**

## Definition of Environmentally Preferable (Green) Purchasing

- Acquisition of products or services that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment when compared with competing products or services that serve the same purpose.  (EO13101, Sec. 201)

## What attributes has Congress specified to date for preferred procurement by Federal agencies? 

- Biobased content
- Farm Security and Rural Investment Act
- Energy and water efficient
- Energy Policy Act of 2005
- Alternative fuels/vehicles
- Energy Policy Act of 2005
- Non-ozone depleting substances
- Clean Air Act (Title VI)
- Recycled content
- Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

## What has Office of Management & Budgetspecified for Purchasing by Federal agencies? 

- Environmental Scorecard – Green Purchasing
- Has comprehensive, written green purchasing plan for biobased, ENERGY STAR/energy efficient, recycled content, and environmentally preferable products
- Demonstrates compliance in representative acquisitions
- Audits compliance annually
- Develops corrective action plan if applicable
- Has sustainability program for electronic stewardship to promote purchase, operation, and use of end-of-life management strategies for electronic assets consistent with memorandum of understanding
- Transportation Scorecard – Fleet Efficiency Purchases
- Demonstrates 75% of newly acquired, covered vehicles are alternative fuel vehicles and requires the use of alternative fuels in those vehicles
- Increases fleet efficiency measures to meet its objective of reducing petroleum consumption by at least 20%
- Audits compliance annually and requires corrective action plans if applicable
- http://www.ofee.gov/whats/2006OMB_ETEscorecard.htm

## Other Drivers that Direct FederalAgencies to Purchase Green Products 

- Executive Orders 13101, 13123, 13134, 13148, 13149, 13221
- Specify environmental preferability in environmental management systems plus expand on environmental attributes specified by Congress
- Federal Electronics Challenge Memo of Understanding
- Federal Leadership in High Performance and Sustainable Buildings Memo of Understanding
- Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)
- DOE Acquisition Regulation (DEAR)
- DOE Orders 450.1 & 430.1
- DOE Acquisition Guide (Chapter 23) and letters
- See http://www.eh.doe.gov/p2/epp/drivers_and_guidelines.html for information on regulations affecting Green Purchasing

## Why Does the Government Target Itself for Green Purchasing?

- U.S. consumes approximately 25% of the world’s resources with 5% of the world’s population
- Federal government is country’s largest purchaser of goods and services:  over $350 billion
- Government creates markets for more environmental products, leading to greater product availability and competitive pricing
- P-Card purchases = 5% of federal purchases (over $17 billion in FY04) = target for opportunity and GAO audits

## U.S. Department of Energy policy is to implement the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), which for Environmentally Preferable Purchasing is to
Implement cost-effective contracting preference programs promoting energy-efficiency, water conservation, and the acquisition of environmentally preferable products and services
Employ acquisition strategies that affirmatively implement the following environmental objectives (FAR 23.703):
Maximize use of environmentally preferable products and services, which includes products with recovered or biobased content designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or the U.S. Department of Agriculture
Promote energy/water efficiency by purchasing ENERGY STAR®/FEMP qualified products
Eliminate or reduce the generation of hazardous waste and the need for special material processing (including special handling, storage, treatment, and disposal)
Promote the use of nonhazardous and recovered material
Realize life-cycle cost savings
Promote cost-effective waste reduction when creating plans, drawings, specifications, standards, and other product descriptions authorizing material substitutions,         extensions of shelf-life, and process improvements
Substitute safe alternatives to ozone-depleting substances (FAR 23.803) 

- Implement cost-effective contracting preference programs promoting energy-efficiency, water conservation, and the acquisition of environmentally preferable products and services
- Employ acquisition strategies that affirmatively implement the following environmental objectives (FAR 23.703):
- Maximize use of environmentally preferable products and services, which includes products with recovered or biobased content designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or the U.S. Department of Agriculture
- Promote energy/water efficiency by purchasing ENERGY STAR®/FEMP qualified products
- Eliminate or reduce the generation of hazardous waste and the need for special material processing (including special handling, storage, treatment, and disposal)
- Promote the use of nonhazardous and recovered material
- Realize life-cycle cost savings
- Promote cost-effective waste reduction when creating plans, drawings, specifications, standards, and other product descriptions authorizing material substitutions,         extensions of shelf-life, and process improvements
- Substitute safe alternatives to ozone-depleting substances (FAR 23.803)

**Why Does DOE Target Itself for ****Green Purchasing?**

## Green Purchasing Benefits

- Makes good business $ense
- Conserves nation’s resources
- Conserves DOE’s resources
- Meets federal regulations
- Meets DOE policy

## Cost Comparison Examples of Green Purchasing

- Paint (latex)					$16/gal
- Recycled (meets commercial paint specs)	$8.25
- Toner Cartridge (Canon Machines) 	$67.74
- 	Recycled Toner Cartridge		$30.67
- Paper (truck-load)				$3.13/ream
- 	Recycled Paper				$2.55
- Binders (3” White slant “D” /w clear covers)	$11.59
- 	Recycled Binders				$6.28

## Principles of Green Purchasing

- Reduce purchases
- Reuse products
- Use life cycle analyses to select green products with
- Designated attributes
- Other environmentally preferable attributes, such as non-toxic

## Reduce Purchases

- Is the product needed?
- Would purchasing a laptop with a docking station reduce the need for staff to have both a desktop and a laptop computer?
- Is the product repairable rather than replaceable?
- Can the carpet seam be mended?
- Is there an alternative?
- Could the research be conducted electronically rather than with chemicals?
- Would a benign substitute perform as well?
- Can hazardous cleaning chemicals be replaced with non-hazardous?

## Reuse Products

- Is the product available for free through materials exchanges:
- DOE Complex Wide Materials Exchange
- Your state’s materials exchange
- Your site’s office product/chemical/ other materials exchange

## Use Life Cycle Analyses to Select Green Products

- With specified attributes
- Alternative fuels/vehicles
- Biobased*/recycled content
- Environmentally preferable electronic equipment
- Energy/water efficient
- Non-ozone depleting
- With other environmentally preferable attributes, such as non-toxic

## What life cycle aspects should you consider when selecting products?

- Raw materials (renewable resource?)
- Manufacturing process (energy/water efficient?)
- Packaging (returnable?)
- Distribution/transportation (locally produced?)

- Operation (energy/water efficient?)
- Maintenance (healthy for staff?)
- Disposal (reusable or at least recyclable?)

## Alternative Fuels/Vehicles

- 75% of newly acquired, covered (under 8,500 lbs) vehicles must be alternative fuel vehicles (AFV):
- AFVs must operate on the alternative fuel unless not reasonably available or more expensive than gasoline.
- Biodiesel in mixtures of at least 20% (B20) used in diesel vehicles can earn AFV acquisition credits.
- Alternative fuels include such fuel as ethanol (E85), natural gas, propane, electric, biodiesel (B20), and hydrogen.
- Fleets required to implement fleet efficiency measures and to acquire vehicles with higher fuel economy ratings
- 20% reduction of petroleum in fleet use compared to 1999 level

- Idaho National Laboratory

## Biobased Product Categories

** **

| adhesives
carpet/fibers
cleaners/solvents
construction materials
fuel additives
inks
landscaping | lubricants
packaging
paint/coatings
papers
plastics
sealants
sorbents |
| --- | --- |

**Biobased Carpet **
**& Cleaners**

**Pacific Northwest National Lab**

## USDA Designated Biobased Products

- Purchasing preference required starting March 2007 for
- Hydraulic fluids for mobile equip – 44%
- Lubricants, penetrating – 68%
- Diesel fuel additives – 90%
- Urethane roof coating – 20%
- *Water tank coating – 59%
- *Bedding, bed linens, towels – 12%
*** **Designated but no effective date yet

**Princeton Plasma Physics Lab**

## Recycled Product Categories

- Office products
- Custodial supplies
- Construction materials
- Landscaping materials
- Park and recreation products
- Transportation and vehicular
- Miscellaneous:  Drums, pallets, strapping, etc.

## EPA Designated Recycled Products

- Purchasing preference required for:
- Office: binders, containers, folders, furniture, paper, toner cartridges, etc.
- Custodial supplies: tissue/towels, recycle/trash containers & bags, etc.
- Construction: carpet, cement, fiberboard, insulation, paint, roofing, etc.
- Landscaping: compost, edging, hoses, lumber, mulch, posts, timbers
- Park/recreation: benches, fencing, surfaces, tables, tracks
- Transportation: barricades, channelizers, cones, delineators, parking stops
- Vehicular: coolants, parts, oil, tires
- Miscellaneous: awards, bike racks, drums, mats, signs, sorbents, strapping

## Exceptions Allowed for Non-Purchase of Designated Biobased/Recycled Content Products

- Cost, Availability, Performance = CAP
- No exceptions for paper: computer printout paper, copy paper, cotton fiber paper, cover stock, file folders, forms bond, office paper (such as notepads), book paper, carbonless paper, and white woven envelopes
- If unavoidable conflict, recycled content takes precedence over biobased content
- Maintain written justification on file for any products not meeting specifications if cost over $2500
- Justification template available at http://www.eh.doe.gov/p2/epp/library/exemjus.doc

## Electronic Equipment  

- EPEAT:  Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool
- Set of voluntary environmental performance criteria (IEEE 1680 American National Standard for the Environmental Assessment of Personal Computer Products)
- Equipment meeting the criteria at www.epeat.net
- Bronze = Meets 23 Mandatory Criteria
- Silver = Meets 23 + 50% of Voluntary
- Gold = Meets 23 + 75% of Voluntary
- Federal Electronics Challenge Goal:  By 2008, 95% of computer units purchased by FEC Partners are     EPEAT bronze or higher

## Electronic Equipment Tips 

- Specify EPEAT
- Restricts cadmium, hexavalent chromium, lead, mercury, selected brominated flame retardants per European Restrictions on Hazardous Substances Directive
- Specifies less material or post-consumer recycled or biobased plastic content
- Specifies design for longevity, reuse, take back including packaging
- Specifies ENERGY STAR® certified equipment
- Buy laptop with docking station                                    instead of desktop and laptop
- Install a Watt Stopper®
- Become a Federal Electronics                                 Challenge Partner

## Energy/WaterEfficient Products

- Must specify ENERGY STAR®/FEMP criteria in all contracts per DOE Acquisition Letter 2006-09 and FAR 2006-008
- Types of Products with ENERGY STAR®/FEMP criteria
- Appliances (clothes washers, dishwashers, freezers, refrigerators, etc.)
- Commercial Equipment (boilers, chillers, coolers, heat pumps, etc.)
- Construction (doors, roofing, windows, etc.)
- Electronic/Office Equipment (computers, copiers, monitors, printers, etc.)
- Food service equipment (griddles, ice machines, steamers, etc.)
- Lighting (compact fluorescent, exit signs, etc.)
- Plumbing (faucets, showerheads, urinals, water heaters, etc.)

## Substitutes for Ozone Depleting Substances

- SNAP: Significant New Alternatives Policy
- Under Section 612(c) of the Clean Air Act, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is authorized to identify and publish lists of acceptable and unacceptable substitutes for class I or class II ozone-depleting substances.
- Substitutes for Ozone Depleting Substances Relevant to DOE Sites are
- Adhesives, coatings, ink
- Aerosols
- Cleaning solvents
- Fire suppression & explosion protection
- Refrigeration & air conditioning

## What happens when designated attributes conflict with one another?

- Recycled content has priority over biobased content
- (per Farm Security and Rural Investment Act, Section 9002)
- Use life cycle analyses to identify which designated attributes should take precedence depending on the product, how and where it will be used

## Examples of Products withMultiple Attributes

- Carpet (biobased* and recycled*)
- Computer equipment (ENERGY STAR®* and EPEAT*)
- Insulation (biobased* and recycled*)
- Landscaping materials (biobased* and recycled*)
- Lubricants (biobased and recycled)
- Paints/coatings (biobased,* ENERGY STAR®,* recycled)
- * = quality commercial products with these attributes available in a single product

## When Using or Preparing the Following, Remember to Specify Green Products

- Purchasing Card
- Purchase Request
- Statements of Work/Requests for Proposal
- Contracts/Preferred Customer Agreements
- Template language for a wide variety of products available at _http://yosemite.epa.gov/oppt/eppstand2.nsf/Pages/Search.html?Open_

## Verify Products and Services Meet the Requirements

- Ask for _percentage_ of biobased/recycled content not just yes or no
- Ask for demonstration of their products and quality assurance program
- Verify products meet all other national standards (ANSI, ASTM, etc.)  for commercial products
-  Ask for free products to test
- Ask for free training on how to install/use products
- Set up closed loop contracts for carpet, cartridges, ceiling tiles, etc.

## Join Forces to Push Prices Down

- Take advantage of Centralized Purchasing – Advantage of bulk purchasing prices
- Take advantage of Decentralized Purchasing – Preferred Customer Agreements leverage same advantage
- Compare prices with other DOE sites
- Check out DOE-HQ Blanket Ordering Agreements (http://professionals.pr.doe.gov/ma5/MA-5Web.nsf/Procurement/Complex-wide+strategic+sourcing+opportunities?OpenDocument )

## Reporting Requirements for Designated Products

- Although giving preference to designated products is required in contracts and individual purchases, reporting is only required for some products
- Required annually to DOE
- Alternative fuels/vehicles (Fleet Mgrs)
- At https://fastweb.inel.gov/ -
- Recycled designated products (Env. Preferable Purchasing Coordinators/Green Acquisition Advocates)
- At http://www.eh.doe.gov/p2/dataentry.html -

## Reporting Requested for Designated Products

- Although giving preference to designated products is required in contracts and individual purchases, reporting is only required for some products
- Requested annually at http://www.eh.doe.gov/p2/dataentry.html
- Biobased designated products - effective March 2007
- Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) registered computers and monitors
- Substitutes for ozone-depleting substances

## Reporting Successes

- Although giving preference to designated products is required in contracts and individual purchases, reporting is only required for some products
- Voluntary/Opportunity to report successes at http://www.eh.doe.gov/p2/dataentry.html
- Environmentally preferable purchases such as reduced haz chemicals
- Energy/water efficient
- Non-designated product purchases with biobased/recycled content

## Systems to gather statistics

- Build capability into purchasing software/system
- Have vendors supply statistics

## Build Capability into Purchasing Software

- Supplies quantity and dollar volume of designated products
-  Supplies reasons for not purchasing:  cost, availability, performance
- Identifies purchasing problems
- Does NOT verify validity of input – garbage in/garbage out principle

## Have vendors supply statistics

- Supplies valid statistics
- Does NOT supply statistics for all purchases
- Does NOT always identify purchasing problems

## Celebrate Successes with Pats on the Back and Awards

- Establish Green Purchaser Pat-on-the-Back Awards
- Ideas:  Certificate of recognition or recycled bag or...
- Initiatives:  Mugs with your logo + gift certificate
- Major:  Quarterly roving trophy and gift certificate or financial recognition
- Publish/advertise success stories
- Nominate your staff for DOE-HQ awards

## Where to Find Green Products

**DOE Environmentally Preferable Purchasing****                           ****http://www.eh.gov/p2/epp/index.html**
**Alternative Fuels/Vehicles ****http://www1.eere.energy.gov/vehiclesandfuels/epact/federal/index.html**
**Biobased Products**** ****http://www.biobased.oce.usda.gov/Catalog/catalog1.cfm**
**Electronic Equipment****  ****http://www.epeat.net/ **
**Energy/Water Efficient Products ****http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=bulk_purchasing.bus_purchasing**** **
**Non-Ozone Depleting Substances **_[http://www.epa.gov/docs/ozone/snap/index.html ](http://www.eere.energy.gov/femp/procurement/)__[  ](http://www.eere.energy.gov/femp/procurement/)_
**Recycled Products****                               **_[http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/procure/products.htm](http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/procure/products.htm)_

## Where to Find Other Green Product Info

**Fed Center   ****                                                                                            ****http://www.fedcenter.gov/programs/buygreen/ **
**Office of the Federal Environmental Executive****  ****          ****http://www.ofee.gov**
**EPA EPP Database**** ****http://yosemite.epa.gov/oppt/eppstand2.nsf/Pages/Search.html?Open**
**DOE-HQ Blanket Ordering Agreements ****http://professionals.pr.doe.gov/ma5/MA-5Web.nsf/Procurement/Complex-wide+strategic+sourcing+opportunities?OpenDocument **

## To Help You Buy Greenat DOE, Contact

**Your Preferred Procurement Team**
**Procurement - Richard Langston **(Office of Procurement and Assistance Management) – Tel. 202-287-1339
**Environmentally Preferable, Biobased/Recycled Products - Don Lentzen **(Office of Pollution Prevention and Resource Conservation)** - **Tel. 202-586-7428
**Electronic Equipment – Jeff Eagan **(Office of Pollution Prevention and Resource Conservation) – Tel. 202-586-4598
**Energy/Water Efficient Products - Shelley Launey **(Office of the Federal Energy Management Program) and Rich Karney (ENERGY** **STAR) – Tel. 202-586-1573 and     202-586-9127
**Construction Materials and Equipment - Anne Crawley **(Office of the Federal Energy Management Program) – Tel. 202-586-1505
**Non-Ozone Depleting Substances – Ted Koss/Emile Boulos (**Office of Air, Water And Radiation) – Tel. 202 586-7964/202-596-1306
**Vehicle Efficient/Alternative Fuels- Shab Fardanesh **(Office of the Federal Energy Management Program) – Tel. 202-586-7011
**Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Technical Support – Sandra Cannon**    (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) – Tel. 509-529-1535
- 		  			  **	****	**