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SUBJECT
Land-of-Sky Regional
Council
Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Resolution
EFFECTIVE DATE: __July 1,
2001___
PURPOSE
WHEREAS, the natural resources of the Region belong to all
the people of the Region; and
WHEREAS, the development of the Region’s economy and the
quality of life, health, and safety
of its citizens are
dependent on the careful stewardship of natural resources and protection
of the
environment; and
WHEREAS, the daily activities and routine operations of
the Land-of-Sky Regional Council
have an impact on the quality
of the Region’s environment and the sustainability of its
natural
resources; and
WHEREAS, the Land-of-Sky Regional Council is a highly
visible model for the Region’s
citizens, local governments,
businesses, and industries; and
WHEREAS, the Land-of-Sky Regional Council can demonstrate
leadership by incorporating
environmentally sustainable
practices into its operations that preserve natural resources,
conserve
energy, eliminate waste and emissions, and lessen
overall environmental impact; and
WHEREAS, on July 21, 1999, Governor James B. Hunt, Jr.
provided leadership and signed an
Executive Order titled "STATE
GOVERNMENT ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY,
REDUCTION OF SOLID
WASTE, AND PROCUREMENT OF ENVIRONMENTALLY
PREFERABLE PRODUCTS";
and
WHEREAS, the State of North Carolina has adopted a
hierarchy of waste management methods
in descending order of
preference as follows:
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Waste Reduction at the Source;
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Recycling and Reuse;
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Composting;
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Incineration with Energy Recovery;
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Incineration without Energy Recovery;
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Disposal in Landfills; and
WHEREAS, markets for recyclable materials can be viable
only if products made from
recycled materials are being
purchased; and
WHEREAS, the procurement of environmentally sound goods
and services by the Land-of-Sky
Regional Council can serve to
protect health and safety, reduce energy consumption,
conserve
natural resources, prevent pollution, and promote
markets for recyclable materials;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Directors of
the Land-of-Sky
Regional Council, in celebration of Earth Day,
2001; that this policy is adopted to encourage
and
increase the use of environmentally preferable products and services at
the
Land-of-Sky Regional Council and Region B as a whole.
By including environmental
considerations in purchasing
decisions, Land-Of-Sky Regional Council can promote practices
that
improve public and worker health, conserve natural
resources, and reward environmentally
conscious manufacturers,
while remaining fiscally responsible.
DEFINITIONS
For the purpose of this resolution, the following
definitions shall apply:
"Environmentally preferable products and services" as
defined by Presidential Executive Order
13101, means products
and services that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and
the
environment when compared to competing products and
services that accomplish the same
function. This applies to raw
material acquisition, as well as product manufacturing,
distribution,
use, maintenance, and disposal.
"Post-consumer recycled material" refers to material that
has served its intended use and has been
discarded for disposal
or recovery, having completed its life as a consumer item, and is used
as a
raw material for new products.
"Practicable" means satisfactory and within reason when
considering price, performance, availability,
compatibility
with specified operation, and public health and safety.
"Price-preference" means a percentage of increase in price
that Land-of-Sky Regional Council will
pay to obtain a
designated product or service.
"Processed-chlorine free paper" refers to paper that is
manufactured using a percentage of post-
consumer recycled paper
fiber (that may contain residues of chlorine) and is whitened without
adding
chlorine or chlorine derivatives.
"Rainforest hardwood/tropical wood" means wood that
originates from trees grown in a rainforest.
"Recyclable" refers to a material or product that can be
reprocessed, remanufactured, or reused.
BACKGROUND
Nationally, combined local and state governments purchase
more than $1 trillion of goods and
services each year. Many of
these products contribute to problems in the environment,
including
contamination of the air and water, depletion of
environmental resources, and damage to ecosystem
health. In
some instances, products require special waste disposal and reporting
procedures which
can be cumbersome and expensive.
Land-of-Sky Regional Council has an opportunity to serve
as a community model for environmental
leadership by
incorporating a plan of action that will conserve resources such as
water, raw materials,
and energy. The plan also can reduce the
use of hazardous substances and potentially improve
the
environmental quality of the region. By incorporating
environmental considerations in public purchasing,
Land-of-Sky
Regional Council can reduce its burden on the local, regional, and
global environment. It
also can remove unnecessary hazards from
its operations, protect public health, reduce costs
and
liabilities, and help develop markets for environmentally
responsible products.
GENERAL POLICIES
5.1 The Land-of-Sky
Regional Council’s purchasing agent and/or their assigns
will:
(1) Educate and inform staff about the environmental
purchasing policies and program;
(2) Coordinate
outreach/training for staff;
(3) Strive to identify
opportunities for environmental purchasing initiatives;
(4)
Periodically discuss with individual departments and employees
opportunities to increase
environmental
purchasing;
(5) Provide technical/logistical assistance to
help departments and employees incorporate
environmentally
preferable products into their operations and projects;
(6)
Provide a forum for open discussion by affected personnel;
(7)
Provide general support to maintain the environmental purchasing
program;
(8) When appropriate, report to executive committee
and/or local government leadership.
5.2 All departments and employees are encouraged to
advance environmental purchasing for their
specific operations
and projects by initiating environmentally preferable purchasing
practices.
5.3 Land-of-Sky Regional Council shall require their
contractors and consultants to use
environmentally preferable
products where practicable no later than July 1, 2001.
RESEARCH, PLANNING, AND EDUCATION
6.1 Purchasing
personnel shall routinely and periodically research practicable
opportunities to:
(1) Expand the purchase of environmentally
preferable products;
(2) Identify environmentally preferable
alternatives;
(3) Recommend goals to practice alternative processes
within operations that will promote resource
conservation and
will reduce the use/disposal of hazardous substances;
(4) Collect and
maintain up-to-date information regarding manufacturers, vendors, and
other sources
for locating/ordering environmentally preferable
products;
(5) Maintain information on actual savings/costs due to
environmentally preferable purchases;
(6) Provide applicable
information to other staff and to Land-of-Sky Regional Council’s
Member
Governments, as appropriate.
6.2 An ad hoc group of staff familiar with the
council’s FY 2001 "Buy Recycled" Grant will meet on
an Ad hoc
basis to assist purchasing with the above tasks in sections 5.1, 5.2,
5.3, and 6.1 and to:
(1) Ensure that contracting procedures do not
discriminate against reusable, recycled, or
environmentally
preferable products without justification;
(2) Evaluate
environmentally preferable products to determine the extent to which
they may be used
by the Council, its member governments, and
its contractors and service providers;
(3) Review and revise
contracting procedures to maximize the specification of
designated
environmentally preferable products where
practicable;
(4) Facilitate data collection on purchases of
designated environmentally preferable products by the
Council,
it service providers, and its contractors.
SPECIFICATIONS
By July 1, 2002, to the extent practicable, Land-of-Sky
Regional Council will incorporate purchasing
specifications
that, at a minimum, follow U.S. EPA Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines
for
products containing recycled content. Recovered Materials
Advisory Notices (RMAN) or similar
information should be used
as a reference for determining the recycled content specification for
these
products.
Additionally, ATTACHMENT A lists itemized specifications
that have been researched, tested,
and/or duly considered by
the Task Force and /or their assign(s) and shall be followed to the
extent
practicable beginning on July 1, 2001.
PERFORMANCE, PRICE, AND
AVAILABILITY
Nothing contained in this policy shall be construed as
requiring a department or contractor to procure
products that
do not perform adequately for their intended use, that exclude adequate
competition, or
that are not available at a reasonable price in
a reasonable period of time.
SIGNATURES
Adopted this the ________ day
of________2001.
____________________________
Fred Niehoff, Jr.,
Chairman
Attest:
____________________________
Robert E. Shepherd, Executive Director
Land-of-Sky Regional
Council
Environmentally Preferable Purchasing
Resolution
ATTACHMENT A
This Attachment is subject to revision and serves as a guide
to the completed discovery process regarding
both general and
specific products. It lists itemized specifications that have been
researched, tested, and/or
duly considered by the Task Force and
/or their assign(s) and shall be followed to the extent
practicable
beginning on July 1, 2001:
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When competitively available, all printing, fax, copy,
bond, post-it, flip chart, craft mailing envelopes,
and other
paper products shall consist of the maximum obtainable post-consumer
recycled
content that does not exceed a 5% increase in unit
cost over its virgin content equivalent. At a
minimum, this
shall consist of 30% post-consumer recycled fiber. This shall include
outside contracted
print jobs;
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A 5% price-preference for processed chlorine-free paper
shall be given to all paper that is used for
internal office
purposes and applicable external uses;
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Where an increase of price greater than 5% exists for an
environmentally preferable product, the
intended consumer or
user of the product, purchasing personnel, and other interested parties
shall
review the budget impact and give due consideration to
the purchase of the product.
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Where practicable, preference will be given to "Green
Disks" (reformatted 1.44 MB. floppy discs
made from recycled
computer software discs) or their equivalent;
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Where practicable, LOSRC shall begin returning used toner
cartridges for remanufacture and
purchase re-manufactured toner
cartridges;
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LOSRC shall not procure products that originate from
rainforest hardwood or tropical wood;
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Where practicable, purchased or leased electronic
equipment including photocopiers, computers,
printers, lighting
systems, and other appropriate energy consumption systems must meet U.S.
EPA
or U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) energy efficiency
standards. Where applicable, the energy
efficiency function
must remain enabled on all energy-efficient equipment.
For more information on this program,
contact Land-of-Sky Regional Council in Asheville at (828)
251-6622
or e-mail
linda_n@landofsky.org. |
