Organisations have significant buying power. Swinging that power around to make the best use of our limited resources is easier than ever.

We need to rethink our purchasing habits to reduce our consumption of energy, water, paper, chemicals and other resources, and this applies as much to our working lives as to our home lives. Australian workplaces consume vast amounts of coal-powered energy which could come from renewable sources, millions of trees for paper that could be sourced from recycled stock, and hundreds of thousands of printer cartridges that could be refilled and recycled.

Often the shift required is minimal (eg moving from non-recycled paper to recycled paper), yet the effect from many workers observing this habit over time is profound. So if your organisation is not buying green now, speak to your workmates, managers and bosses and make it happen.

Do it now!

1. Audit your office purchases and go green - Compile a master list of all supplies and equipment used by your organisation, and identify environmentally preferred options as well as suppliers for each.

• Green Procurement program - Run by the not-for-profit organisation Good Environmental Choice, this program helps train procurement officers to buy green.
• Environmental labelling program - run by Good Environmental Choice, this program labels and lists pro-environmental products on their database to help organisations that want to buy green.

2. Buy recycled paper - Buying recycled paper complements a staff effort to use less paper and recycle it (see Saving Paper & Forests), and significantly reduces the impact on the environment. Some things to aim for when purchasing recycled paper:

• 80 per cent recycled content
• Non-recycled content sourced from places certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (see Buy Paper and Wood Responsibly)
• Paper of the lightest possible weight
• Paper manufactured in Australia (thus avoiding transport energy)
• Unbleached paper where practical (eg for folders and envelopes)
• Bleached paper that uses the most environmentally friendly production process (the following list starts with the friendliest and works down

1. Paper bleached using Totally Chlorine Free (TCF) processes

2. Paper bleached using oxygen delignification or extended delignification, and bleached without elemental chlorine

3. Paper bleached using oxygen delignification or extended delignification, and bleached using some residual elemental chlorine

4. Paper bleached using without elemental chlorine but not made using oxygen delignification or extended delignification

5. Paper bleached using only elemental chlorine, and sulfite pulps, including those that are TCF, should be AVOIDED

• Non-coloured papers.
• Water-based adhesives on envelopes and mailing labels

3. Buy renewable electricity - switching the organisation's energy from coal to renewable electricity complements a staff effort to use less energy (see Power Down) and encourages further effort by all.

4. Buy the most efficient office equipment - Analysing and understanding the lifetime cost of equipment - a cost that includes the cost of operational energy and resource use (eg paper) - is essential for making pro-efficient decisions (and business cases). So, when looking to purchase or lease computers, printers, fax machines, and copiers ensure they

• Are Energy Star-certified for energy efficiency, with 'power-down' modes and other energy-saving features
• Are able to work with a broad range of plain office papers
• Are robust and don't require frequent maintenance
• Have two-sided printing capability and the ability to set this as the default mode
• Are able to be used with recycled toner cartridges (some copier and printer companies also offer recycled toner cartridges and provide for recycling of spent cartridges)

5. Purchase recycled ink and toners cartridges - Reconditioned or remanufactured cartridges are available for the following office equipment

• laser and inkjet printers
• photocopiers
• fax machines
• dot matrix printers

According to the Australian Cartridge Remanufacturers Association (ACRA), remanufactured cartridges are now around 50 per cent cheaper than new products. The ACRA site has a database of remanufacturers if you want to purchase recycled ink and toner cartridges.

6. Reward staff with indoor plants - Encourage and (pay for) staff to deck the office with toxin-absorbing plants (see Remove Toxins from your Office). Alternatively, plant rental (and service) companies exist that will fit out and maintain a jungle of indoor plants in your office.

Why this action

is

important

Organisations, like all elements of our society, need to become active participants in the journey to create a sustainable civilisation. In addition, as organisations commit to using less energy, water and resources, they show leadership to their staff. That's not to mention the money to be saved and the improvement to brand, culture and staff morale.