Sustainability in the Mid-Atlantic
The Strategic Sustainability Performance Plan states that GSA will eliminate its impact on the natural environment and use its government-wide influence to reduce the environmental impact of the Federal government.
In response to this plan, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Sustainability Council was created to guide the implementation of regional activities needed to achieve these environmental goals, and drive progress towards a Zero Environmental Footprint.
The goals of the regional council include:
- Establish GSA and the Mid-Atlantic Region as leaders in sustainable real estate
- Develop and implement sustainable education and training opportunities for all GSA business lines, including energy, water, waste, sustainability, and sustainable acquisition
- Establish standard practices and develop models that institute sustainability requirements within all GSA business lines
In the past year, the Mid-Atlantic Region made great progress in the implementation of sustainable practices:
- The Mid-Atlantic Region Green Team was created to promote green practices for GSA's regional employees; "green" themes and events including monthly Farmer's Markets promote sustainable practices.
- The LEED Platinum NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, VA opened in June 2011, a new office building outfitted with sustainable attributes including a geothermal system to heat and cool the building, a vegetative roof, and photovoltaic solar panels on the roof.
- The Public Building Service Mid-Atlantic Region's solicitation for facilities engineering, operations, and maintenance services at the Post Office and Courthouse in Pittsburgh, PA, was the Region's first solicitation to incorporate Green Purchasing Requirements. GSA’s Green Procurement Program (GPP), established to promote the purchase and use of sustainable products for all federal projects, requires contractors to participate and partner with the government in the initiative of obtaining high performance and sustainable operations. The solicitation will require the selected contractor to utilize green products and services during project planning, design, construction and maintenance, and to submit a report identifying which green products they will utilize.
- The Region joined with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and eForce Compliance in a Sustainability Partnership to further “green” the operations of each organization.
