Greening Your Municipal Office. May 2012

Transcription

1 Greening Your Municipal Office May 2012

2 Councilors adapting to ipads Younger members embrace technology more readily than older members Intuitively adapted to controls and functionality Length of exposure corresponds to continued interest and usage Resistance to giving up access after just several hours use

3 Orangutans adapting to ipads Younger members embrace technology more readily than older members Intuitively adapted to controls and functionality Length of exposure corresponds to continued interest and usage Resistance to giving up access after just several hours use

4 Just saying

5 NL Paint Recycling Program 400,000 litres of left over paint each year 37 collection sites now accepting paint (29 last week) By the end of 2013, Product Care will have ~20 additional sites/events Goal of reusing or recycling 70% of all the paint collected

6 Paint Recycling Program Continued Accepted Products: Interior/Exterior Oil/Latex/Stains Varnishes Some Marine Paint Wood Finishing Oils Paint Aerosols Empty Paint Cans Not accepted - tars, paint thinners, deck cleaners, non-aero auto paint, anti-foulants etc. productcare.org/nl

7 Extended Producer Responsibility Under an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) approach, producers: Take responsibility for the end-of-life handling of their products. Find ways to redesign their products to be less harmful to the environment, and to be cheaper and easier to recycle. Are made responsible for designing, implementing, administrating and managing all aspects of a collection and recycling program.

8 EPR - Benefiting Municipalities Under an EPR approach, the role of MMSB shifts from implementing and managing waste diversion programs to approving and overseeing. EPR programs shift the burden of properly handling specific waste streams away from municipalities and taxpayers to manufacturers and users (resulting in less municipal waste to manage) MMSB is working on other EPR Programs that will help reduce your community s costs of handling waste.

9 Vision of a Clean and Healthy Environment Municipalities play a leadership role in helping us create a greener future.

10 Why You Should Green Your Office There are many benefits to becoming a greener office: 1. You will have a lighter ecological footprint Reducing your negative impacts on the environment, so our children and grandchildren don t have to pay for our actions. 2. You will have a healthier and more productive place to work - 8 out of 10 employees support office sustainability initiatives. 3. You will reduce your operating costs Less waste = lower tipping fees, less electricity, gas = lower bills. 4. You will be walking the talk Your residents will take their cues from the behaviour of the town leaders and staff.

11 Getting Started: Set-up a Green Team Your Green Team should: Include individuals across various functions and locations Include people who truly want to make things greener Count on support from the highest levels in council

12 Green Team Activities Some of the initial activities that your Green Team should focus on are: 1. Carry-out an assessment of you current practices and results (amount of garbage generated, paper used/month, electric bills, etc.) 2. Establish goals/targets for the greening activities for your office, and discuss these with all staff/council to obtain buy-in and ensure support in achieving them. Waste reduction, Kwh savings, gas bill savings, etc. 3. Launch and communicate new green practices.

13 The most important thing to do: Reduce your consumption of everything products, resources, energy, water, etc. We have become a nation of consumers we consume 2x as much as our grandparents did 5 planets needed to sustain our current behaviour Its reduce reuse recycle for a reason Recycling still requires more energy than not manufacturing something in the first place

14 Tip # 1 - Reduce Paper Consumption In a typical office, each employee generates 1.5 pounds of waste paper per day.

15 Tip #1 - Reduce Paper Consumption There are several things you can do to cut down on your office paper usage: 1. Print hard copies only when necessary. 2. Set all printers and photocopiers to default doublesided printing. 3. Print powerpoint slides 2 to a page (2-up)where practical 20 slide presentation can be printed on 5 pages 4. Consider electronic documentation via laptops, ipads, but discipline, training and correct apps are essential. 5. Reuse paper that only has printed material on one side.

16 Tip #2 - Smarter Paper Purchasing There are simple practices that you should follow when purchasing paper for your office: 1. Purchase paper that is made from a high percentage of post-consumer recycled content. 1. Ensure you specify and buy only Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper (SFI certification is facing significant scrutiny) 2. Purchase paper that is processed chlorine free (PCF) versus totally chlorine free (TCF). 3. Purchase unbleached and uncolored paper where possible.

17 Tip #3 - Energy Conservation Commercial and Institutional buildings represent 13% of Canada s carbon emissions. Office equipment accounts for 16% of an office s energy use.

18 Tip # 3 - Energy Conservation & Office Equipment Turn sleep mode on all computers. Turn off computers when not in use. Activate sleep modes for printers, copiers and fax machines. Purchase ENERGY STAR qualified equipment.

19 Tip # 4 - Improve Transportation & Reduce Carbon Emissions Choose the right vehicles. Host workshops to educate staff. Implement an idlefree policy and idlefree zones. Purchase properly sized, fuel efficient vehicles. Join E3 Fleets

20 Tip # 4 - Monitor Lighting Usage Light exit signs with lower energy bulbs. Replace old fluorescent lighting fixtures with T-8 bulbs and consider new LED lights. Install occupancy sensors in variable traffic areas.

21 Tip #5 - Composting Start composting your office organic waste Coffee Tea bags Paper Veg/fruit waste Grass clippings Even better, set up a community composting site.

22 Other Tips Obviously, recycle everything possible Purchase a water cooler rather than bottled water Consider reusable dishes, but always choose paper over styrofoam Replace garbage cans with small containers 100% RECYCLED TOILET PAPER! Do not pay more for biodegradable Think hard before taking plane trips and consider skype and webcasts as alternatives Develop green procurement specifications where possible FSC paper Require photocopiers to be recycled at end-of-life and require documented proof Specify MPG for vehicles Ask for supplier sustainability practices in RFPs

23 "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead Thank you and call us if you would like help in greening your town or municipal offices.

24