Greening a business can save money, boost productivity, earn
respect and make an impact on the environment. Making a few no-
or low-cost changes is a good way to start the greening effort and
gain the blessing of senior management. To begin the process,
go back to the basics and ask everyone to work as a team toward
a “greening” effort.
In nature, nothing is wasted and material and energy loops are closed. Make
closing these loops a goal by starting small. First, try encouraging
employees to bring their own bottles and bags to work. That
simple change could help reduce the 300 billion plastic shopping
bags and 4 billion pounds of plastic bottles that Americans discard
each year. These plastics are not biodegradable, but rather they
photodegrade, breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic pieces. Plastic
bags are among the most common waste items found in coastal cleanups,
and hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other marine
mammals die every year from eating discarded plastic bags mistaken
for food.
Beginning with these simple steps and working toward greater greening
initiatives will not only help the environment, but will reduce
purchasing and waste disposal costs at your company. WasteWise,
a free voluntary program from the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), helps companies make even greater changes by providing
free technical assistance to encourage businesses to develop, implement
and measure waste reduction activities, and design waste-reduction
programs tailored to their needs.
Cutting down on paper
The average office employee uses 10,000 sheets of copy paper each
year. The U.S. uses nearly 3.7 million tons of copy paper annually,
the equivalent of more than 700 billion sheets. The EPA estimates
that paper and paperboard account for nearly 40 percent of our garbage. Copy
paper, commonly used in photocopiers, computer printers and plain-paper
fax machines, is the most common type of office waste paper. Office
paper is highly recyclable, but much of it winds up in the office
trash can.
Businesses can do their part and save money by implementing
programs to encourage the purchase of recycled products and reduced
paper waste. Paper made from 100 percent post-consumer recycled
content is often the same price as all-virgin paper. Buying recycled
paper also increases the demand for these eco-friendly products.
Office supply company Staples offers more than 2,800 products with
recycled content, from 100 percent recycled copy paper to remanufactured
inkjet cartridges.
Xerox is another frontrunner for responsible and environmentally-friendly
business practices. The Xerox Green World Alliance, a recycling
program that minimizes the environmental impacts of printer supplies
and provides options to reduce container waste, leads the industry
in alternatives for used supplies such as printer cartridge reprocessing,
waste toner reuse, plastics and metals recovery and waste-to-energy
conversion.
Your office can do its part by starting a paper waste reduction
policy. This type of policy can be very cost effective for business
because it reduces the amount of material that needs to be collected,
transported and processed. Practice efficient copying by using
the size reduction feature offered on many copiers, reducing the
width of margins and font sizes and printing on both sides of the
paper. These options reduce waste and save both resources and money.
Don’t forget about other recyclable products. Turn in old
toner cartridges for recycling and use remanufactured ink and laser
toner for printers and fax machines. Large office supply stores
such as Staples, Office Depot and OfficeMax now accept toner cartridges
for recycling. Other commonly discarded products, such as cell phones,
PDAs, pagers and rechargeable batteries, are also accepted for recycling
at many supply stores.
Make your office an “Energy
Star”
Commercial energy use is increasing two percent per year, and household
energy use also is on the rise. Encourage employees to use energy
responsibly both in and out of the office. Before you leave home
for long periods, turn down the thermostat on the hot water heater
and adjust the thermostat. Allow employees to reduce their
dependence on cars by making the office bike-friendly by arranging
for bicycle storage and an on-site shower. Offer public transportation
stipends and provide a spot in the office for employees to find
others near them interested in carpooling arrangements.
When purchasing new appliances and equipment, look for the “Energy
Star” label, which means the product is approved by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy
because of its energy efficiency. Using these “Energy Star”
products saved $14 billion in utility costs and cut greenhouse gas
emissions in the United States, the equivalent of the emissions
from 25 million cars.
At the office, turn computers and other office equipment off at
the end of the day and set equipment to “sleep” mode
when it’s not in use. Activating sleep settings on just
one computer can prevent about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions
each year.
Travel Green
Green business means taking advantage of telecommuting tools, but
when we must travel, it is possible to mitigate the effects of the
emissions by purchasing carbon offsets designed specifically for
travelers through the Better World Club’s “Travel Cool”
program or the Trees for the Future “Trees for Travel”
program. The Better World Club is an eco-friendly roadside
assistance and insurance organization for motorists that offers
discounts to club members on hybrid car rentals through a green
car rental company.
Spend company travel dollars with businesses that are interested
in protecting the environment. Eco-friendly hotels can be found
through the Green Hotel Association. Many of these hotels have a
clear environmental agenda that is displayed through an interest
in water-saving measures, energy conservation and waste reduction.
Many of these hotels offer towel and sheet-changing options, soap
and shampoo dispensers, guestroom recycling baskets and reduced
food-related waste. Book flights with airlines that recycle the
waste created when serving food and beverages to passengers. British
Airways, for instance, has a very strong environmental agenda. To
find some of these airlines and hotels, visit the World Choice Travel
site. The site, which is a division of Travelocity.com, is a hotel
search engine that provides a wide selection of hotel accommodations
throughout the world.
Clean “green”
Typical cleaning products are potentially toxic to both humans
and the environment. These harmful products flush down the drain
into our rivers and oceans and cloud our air indoors. EPA studies
indicate that human exposure to air pollutants indoors can be two
to five times higher than outdoor levels. Purchasing green cleaning
products reduces the impact these solutions can have on human health
and the environment.
Few janitorial supply distributors have capitalized on green business
opportunities, but using green cleaning and other aspects of sustainable
building operations reduce energy and water use and simplify cleaning
methods with improved chemicals.
Seventh Generation is the nation’s leading brand of non-toxic
and environmentally safe household products. With distribution
in thousands of natural product and grocery stores nationwide, the
company has won more than 15 major awards recognizing its efforts
to preserve the environment. Seventh Generation products include:
non-chlorine bleached, 100 percent recycled paper towels, bathroom
and facial tissues, napkins and paper plates; non-toxic, phosphate
free, biodegradable cleaning, dish and laundry products; plastic
trash bags made from at least 65 percent recycled plastic; chlorine
free baby diapers and baby wipes; and chlorine free feminine care
products. |
