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Purchasing Practices That Encourage Regulatory Compliance and Pollution Prevention

Introduction

Local governments use numerous products to perform public services. Product manufacturing (including raw material extraction), transportation, use, and disposal can generate byproducts that stress local and global environmental resources and pose health threats to product users and the public. By incorporating environmental and health criteria into purchasing specifications, local governments can avoid the use of potentially harmful chemicals, reduce the risk of accidents and toxic releases, and more easily achieve regulatory compliance. Localities are also discovering they can save money by reducing the amount of hazardous materials they handle and by purchasing energy efficient equipment.

Presidential Executive Order 13101 (which strengthens Executive Order 12873) "Greening the Government Through Waste Prevention, Recycling, and Federal Acquisition," has directed federal agencies to increase their demand for recycled content products and other environmentally preferable products and services. Many local and state governments have voluntarily adopted policies that support the Executive Order and have increased their procurement of recycled products and products that are less hazardous, non-toxic, energy efficient, and that generate less waste.

Typical Products Purchased by Local Governments and Environmentally- Preferable Product Alternatives

The composition of wastes and the types of emissions generated by local government is directly affected by the products they purchase. Choosing environmentally-preferable alternatives to products that are considered hazardous, or that contribute to wastes covered under environmental regulations, is a preventative strategy available to any agency involved in product requisition. Please refer to the accompanying local government operations in this manual for specific wastes generated and pollution prevention opportunities.

(This is a sample of products purchased by local governments and includes environmentally preferred alternatives to consider. This does not constitute an endorsement of any particular products. All products should be researched and tested.)

Department/Operation	Products Purchased	Environmentally-Preferred Alternatives
Construction/Property Management	Construction Site Fill/Base Material (stone, dirt, etc.) Structural Building Materials Electrical Equipment Adhesives Petroleum-Based Solvents and Cleaners Petroleum-Based Paints	Fill/Base Containing Recycled Materials (recycled concrete, glass, or asphalt) Recycled Content Building Materials Energy-Efficient Equipment and Building Design (low-mercury fluorescent lights; energy efficient HVAC; etc.) Vegetable-Based Adhesives Vegetable/Citrus-Based Solvents Water-Based Paints
Vector/Pest Management	Chemical Pesticides and Herbicides	Integrated Pest Management (mechanical, physical, and biological pest control techniques; least-hazardous chemical options)
Public Safety	Fire Response and Suppression Mercury Batteries Mercury Thermometers Lead Bullets	Ozone-Safe Fire Extinguishers Mercury-Free and Rechargeable Batteries Mercury-Free Thermometers Ceramic Bullets (for firing range use only)
Solid Waste Management	Vehicle Fuel (gasoline, diesel fuel) Recycling Bins and Residential Trash Cans	Alternative Fuels (natural gas, propane, solar generated electricity, etc.) Recycled Content Recycling Bins and Trash Cans
Wastewater Collection and Treatment	Chlorine, Hypochlorite Petroleum-Based Lubricants Petroleum-Based Solvents	Ultraviolet Osmosis Vegetable-Based Lubricants Vegetable/Citrus-Based Solvents; Aqueous-Based Parts Washers
Vehicle/Equipment Maintenance	Petroleum-Based and Chlorinated Solvents (parts washers, brake cleaners) Automotive Fluids Tires	Aqueous-Based Cleaners; Microbial Agents; Vegetable/Citrus-Based Solvents; Aerosol-free Cleaners Recycled Automotive Fluids (re-refined motor oil and recycled propylene glycol antifreeze) Retread Tires; Tires with Maximum Durability
Printing	Petroleum-Based Inks Perchloroethylene; Petroleum Distillates (blanket washes)	Soy/Vegetable-Based Inks; Water-Washable Ink Systems Vegetable Ester Solvents; Terpene-Based Solvents
Administration	Electronic Office Equipment Office Furniture Paper Supplies; Paper Use Toner Cartridges	Energy-Efficient Office Equipment Refurbish Used Furniture Post-Consumer Recycled Content, Chlorine-Free Paper; Double-Sided Copying; Reuse of Scrap Paper Remanufactured Toner Cartridges

Top Pollution Prevention Opportunities

1. Pass a purchasing policy that promotes the integration of environmental and health criteria in all product specifications.
2. Form an interdepartmental committee to investigate environmental purchasing opportunities.
3. Educate entire staff about health effects associated with chemicals commonly found in the products they use or are exposed to, and provide information on alternatives. Prompt users to choose environmentally preferable products.
4. Involve product end-users throughout the decision making process, request that vendors perform product demonstrations for staff, and compare products.
5. Choose one department/operation at a time to incorporate environmentally preferable products. Review final product specifications with product user or operation supervisor to ensure that their needs are satisfied.
6. Review all purchases and product Material Safety Data Sheets for potential environmental and health impacts associated with products being purchased.
7. Avoid purchasing products that are potentially harmful to the user, public, or environment, e.g. contain known or suspected carcinogens and other toxic ingredients.
8. Prevent the generation of hazardous wastes in operations by eliminating products that contain hazardous ingredients.
9. Participate in cooperative purchasing ventures with other jurisdictions, your state, and vendors to increase availability of environmentally preferable products and reduce internal costs associated with the formal bid process.
10. When researching environmental purchasing, utilize resources and expertise available from vendors, manufacturers, government agencies, non-profit and other organizations.
11. Consider environmental and health impacts associated with a product's life cycle prior to drafting bid specifications ("product life cycle" includes raw material extraction or development, product manufacturing, transportation to market, product use, and disposal).
12. Implement waste reduction activities (e.g., implement lease agreements that require vendors to take responsibility for products as they become obsolete; require prospective bidders to avoid excess paper and packaging in their bid and proposal submittals such as avoiding plastic covers and dividers, using both sides of paper, and use post-consumer recycled content paper; specify copiers and printers with double-sided printing capabilities; etc.)
13. Begin an energy conservation program and invest in energy-efficient equipment and building design (specify EPA "Energy Star" certified equipment and require equipment installers to activate efficiency features upon product installation).

"Pollution Prevention Questionnaire for Municipal Departments" and "Procurement Recommendations Applicable to Multiple City Departments and Agencies," Environmental Defense Fund, 1875 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 1016, Washington, DC 20009; phone (202) 387-3500; contact Lois Epstein (Lois_Epstein@edf.org).

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