New green procurement policies mean opportunities and changes for contractors

November 10th, 2009 | Posted by Vanessa Payne

Both opportunities and challenges await contractors as a result of Executive Order 13514 on Federal Sustainability.  One particular component, the green procurement policy, will cover 95 percent of new contracts and acquisitions and carry a lot of weight due to the government’s mammoth buying power which exceeds more than a half trillion dollars spent on goods and services annually.

Some “green-oriented” companies could win never-before-seen opportunities. Preference or other incentives could be given for “products manufactured using processes that minimize greenhouse gas emissions.” Other longtime contractors may get the boot because their products don’t fit the new eco-friendly bill.  Green purchasing advocates have pushed for — and some local jurisdictions say they are complying with — policies to stop contracts for eco-unfriendly items like bottled water.  Requirements may also be imposed – recommendations could include requiring vendors to register with a voluntary greenhouse gas emissions registry and disclose their efforts to reduce emissions.

Signed 10/5/09, the “Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance” Executive Order, requires Federal agencies to set a 2020 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target within 90 days; increase energy efficiency; reduce fleet petroleum consumption; conserve water; reduce waste; support sustainable communities; and leverage Federal purchasing power to promote environmentally-responsible products and technologies.

Green procurement will also have a local impact. Local governments, with roughly $15 billion in total annual buying power, are increasingly adopting policies in their procurement departments that call for eco-friendly products and services, ones that are green from creation to contract. The District of Columbia is specifying more environmental preference in its purchasing. Montgomery County, MD, is working to consolidate green procurement practices across all of its agencies. Arlington County, VA,  is working to make its seven-year green buying policy more stringent. And Fairfax County, VA’s County Executive recently signed a new proclamation asking county agencies to move toward greener purchases.

The GreenGov Challenge may provide additional ideas and possible vendor opportunities.  “Sustainable Products and Purchasing” was one of six categories in the Obama administration recent GreenGov Challenge program for federal Employees to submit their own clean energy ideas and vote on others related to President’s Executive Order on Federal Sustainability. The challenge completed on 10/31/09 with 5,314 ideas and 165,487 votes cast by 14,139 government and military employees.

The  Executive Order charges the General Services Administration (GSA) with exploring the feasibility of tracking vendor greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, GSA is helping federal agencies go green with a range of products, services, and policies. Check back next week for more on selling and procuring “green” products via GSA Schedule Contracts.  Contact Vanessa Payne, 301-231-6200, vpayne@aronsoncompany.com with questions or comments.

Tags: buying, Carbon, Conserve, eco-friendly, Emissions, energy, Executive Order, Green, GreenGov Challenge, GSA, LinkedIn, Procurement, Sustainable, waste, water

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 10th, 2009 at 12:16 pm and is filed under Federal Agency Spending, GSA, Region - DC, Region - MD, Region - VA. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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