Environmental Health

Environmentally Preferable Procurement Policy

To reduce the environmental impact of procurement and the impact of City service delivery and operations.

Topic Areas Addressed:

Environmental Health

Keywords:

packaging, san jose, procurement, purchases

Submitting Jurisdiction:

City of San Jose

In 2001, City Council adopted Council Policy 4-6, the Environmentally Preferable Procurement Policy. EP3 puts forth the City’s intention to utilize environmentally preferable goods and services where possible, demonstrate leadership, and help move the market towards more environmentally sound commerce.

In implementing this policy, the City procures hundreds of different products such as recycled paper and supplies, re-refined oil, retread tires, and recycled toner cartridges. Training and electronic internal communications add to the educational process of EP3.

By further incorporating environmental considerations into public purchasing, the City of San José will positively impact human health and the environment, remove unnecessary hazards from its operations, and reduce costs and liabilities.

Public Outreach and Education:

The City internal EP3 newsletter launched in March 2008 to educate staff about EP3 innovations and recognize responsible staff; City employees can learn more about the City’s EP3 policy by attending the Purchasing Fundamentals classes offered by the Employee Services Department.

Target Audience:

San Jose Municipal Staff (directly) – serving as a role model to San Jose residents

Measurable Outcomes:

City purchases for EPEAT alone will produce energy savings of 288,000 kwh and avoid the generation of 22,600 kg of greenhouse gas emissions, 800 kg of hazardous waste, and 2,500 kg in water emissions.

Public Support & Opposition:

The City has received two awards for its procurement policy, generating favorable publicity: the EPA’s 2007 “Green Electronics Champion Award” for being the first municipality to standardize computer purchases on the EPEAT environmental standard for computers and the “Green California Leadership Award” for its overall EP3 program.

Fiscal Impacts:

In the 2007-2008 fiscal year, new green attributes were included in at least $19 million worth of San Jose procurement (14.2% of total purchases). Financial savings occurred in, among other things, energy, water, and fuel consumption. For the most part, environmental procurement has led to cost savings.

The San Jose Finance Department is also developing a product replacement protocol for its existing product inventory.

In FY 2007-08, the City made $986,500 in IT purchases that qualify for the US EPEAT environmental standard. This standard goes beyond the Energy Star standard to address (among other things) materials, hazardous waste, end of life management, and packaging associated with IT equipment. Over their product lifecycles, City EPEAT purchases for FY 2007-08 will result in an estimated cost savings of $24,900.

Originating Source:

San Jose’s environmental procurement efforts originated in the early 1990s with Policy 4-4 on Source Reduction and Recycling Procurement, which addressed the need to create markets for recycled materials from residents. Early emphasis was on recycled content paper.