Green Procurement & Federal Policy

Green Procurement, also termed Affirmative Procurement, refers to the purchase of environmentally preferable products and services in accordance with one or more of the established Federal "green" procurement preference programs.

There are two components to all Green Procurement Programs:


Mandatory

  • Recycled content products (See Comprehensive Procurement Guide-CPG)
  • Energy Star and energy-efficient products; energy efficient stand-by power devices
  • Alternative fuel vehicles/ alternative fuels
  • Biobased products
  • Non-ozone depleting substances
  • EPA Priority chemicals

Voluntary

  • Environmentally Preferable Products (EPP)

When to Begin a Green Program

Start at the beginning of the procurement process to be most effective.
View our Green Brochure for additional information on how your agency can go green with us.


Why Buy "Green"?

  • Less waste ∞ Less cost ∞ Compliance with Federal Green Procurement Law
  • First, purchasing products that are made of recycled or recovered material keeps those items from entering the waste stream.
  • Second, green products may cost less, require less maintenance, or have a lower life cycle cost (total cost of a product or service from design to disposal, or cradle to grave.)
  • Third, by buying green products, your program will be in compliance with all Federal Green Procurement requirements.

How Does Green Procurement Apply to the Acquisition Services Directorate Contracts?

The Acquisition Services Directorate must follow the Green Procurement Program (GPP) policy of each customer organization. All government organizations are required to have a GPP, including the Department of Defense.

The GPP policy applies to all internal Acquisition Services Directorate procurement activities, such as construction, products, and services. This includes all purchases made with government credit cards.

Please take a look at the Green Products Compilation reference. Created by the Office of the Federal Environmental Executive (OFEE), this is a compilation of the products for which EPA, DOE, and USDA have provided environmental or energy attribute recommendations. For the first time, product and services specifiers and contracting officials can find all of the designated products in an easy to use series of spreadsheets. Version 3 of OFEE's green products compilation spreadsheets is now available. This version includes new FEMP standards for beverage vending machines and ENERGY STAR standards for televisions. New columns identify products available from the AbilityOne Program and from UNICOR (Federal Prison Industries).


Federal Purchasing Power

The purchasing power of our Federal Government tops $350 Billion per year. Those dollars include not just people, but over 40% are products.

The Federal Government has enacted mandates for the acquisition of various products and services:

Green Mandates:


FedCenter

The Federal Facilities Environmental Stewardship and Compliance Assistance Center, FedCenter, is an all-services technical and compliance assistance center created to assist Federal environmental officials with their environmental requirements. The organization came about through a joint initiative of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA), the Army Corps of Engineers’ Construction Engineering Research Laboratory and the Office of the Federal Environmental Executive.

The website has a wealth of information to assist you. Postings include upcoming events within the Federal community, proposed and final regulatory information, compliance issues, directories and catalogs of products, libraries, organizations and programs, lessons learned, and procurement language and templates for contracts.

FedCenter

The US Environmental Protection Agency has compiled a list of the top 10 Federal Government largest purchasers of green power: Top 10 Largest Green Purchasers in the Federal Government.

Find Grant Opportunities with the Federal Government

Let us help you be compliant, and make a difference in the green world – Ask the advice of our Greening Coordinator.