Issue/Publication: Office Solutions Magazine

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An office environment is a lot like a garden – growing and changing every time you put on your gloves and get down in the dirt. Even before you start planting, you have to prepare the soil (office) – but what if your plants (employees) are already in the ground when you realize the soil is toxic?

Whether your office is the working hub for seven or 70 people, creating a sustainable environment for your employees is easier than ever before. According to a study conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management, 50 percent of U.S. companies have some form of environmental responsibility policy, proving that caring for the planet is becoming a key aspect of “business as usual.”

What do you do? Where do you start? The following ten steps are the easiest environmentally conscious actions to take, with options to fit every budget and business size.

1) Reduce, Reuse and Recycle your Paper

The average cost of a wasted piece of printer paper is $.06. Add to that the fact that each employee will print six wasted pages a day (1,410 a year), and you’ve already lost nearly $85 per employee, per year on paper alone. Saving money and saving paper go hand in hand. Setting up recycle bins in high traffic areas, like printer/copy rooms, will help to divert more paper from landfills. Before that, there are a host of things you and your employees can do to reduce the amount of paper that needs to be recycled in the first place:

• Make double sided copies.
• Share memos via e-mail instead of printing them.
• Buy paper made from minimum 30% post consumer content (but more is always better).
• Reuse the back of old documents for printing drafts or as scrap paper to formulate ideas and projects (great for meetings!).
• Eliminate the use of paper plates in the break room – have employees bring spare cups and plates from home.
• Decrease the printing margins in Microsoft Word from 1.25” to 0.75” – it may sound small but according to GOOD Magazine, if everyone in the U.S. changed their margins, we’d save a section of trees nearly the size of Rhode Island each year.
• Install GreenPrint software [http://www.printgreener.com/] to help eliminate unwanted pages before printing.

2) Seek Out Greener Office Supplies

Pens, pencils, paper clips, staples, organizers, label makers, scissors, correction fluid, rules, hole punches … it may all seem like small stuff, but it sure adds up quickly. Buying office supplies made from recycled plastics and papers (which are also recyclable after their use) is now no more costly than buying your usual goods from Staples or Office Depot.

While the big stores are starting to carry more sustainable goods, buying from a specialized green office supplier will make it much easier to choose truly green products. Three of the most reputable and diverse sellers of eco-office supplies are Frogfile [http://www.frogfile.com/], The Green Office [http://www.thegreenoffice.com/], and Green Earth Office Supply [http://greenearthofficesupply.stores.yahoo.net/],

3) Opt for Organic or Fair Trade Coffee and Treats

While you are shopping around for recycled paper and non-toxic pens, don’t forget to add some green goods for the break room to your order. Organic and fair trade teas, coffee, sugar and snacks not only impact the health of your employees but also the well-being of those who grow and live in the communities where these goods are made.

Newman’s Own Organics, which sells everything from organic popcorn and pretzels to dried fruit and cookies, has donated over $200 million to charities around the world since the company’s establishment in 1982. Equal Exchange; makers of organic and fair trade coffee, cocoa and teas; sources their goods from small farmers in cooperatives in the Dominican Republic, Paraguay, and Central Columbia, just to name a few. While helping others, your employees will get the chance to enjoy richer flavors and fuller aromas thanks to the absence of pesticides and antibiotics in their daily drinks.

4) Clean with Green in Mind

Wiping down a counter after a coffee spill or cleaning out the toilets at night, what chemicals you choose to clean with have an impact on everyone’s health. Most offices use professional cleaning services but by providing them (and your employees) with safe products, you will help reduce the number of headaches and sick days from cleaners with formaldehyde or petroleum based ingredients.

Dishwashing liquid, carpet shampoo, air fresheners, recycled toilet paper and paper towels, window and all purpose cleaners are all available from green office supply retailers, some with relaxing or energizing scents such as lavender and orange.

5) Refurbished or Recycled Furniture Makes Sustainable Workspaces

Chairs, desks, bookcases and all other general office furniture have not only effect on your company’s bottom line but also the size of landfills. Enough furniture to fill all the offices in Boston is thrown away each year, much of which is still functional, save for a few minor repairs. Buying through refurbishing companies saves both money and resources. Open Plan Systems [http://www.openplan.com/] has sales offices in over 10 cities and is a leader in the refurbished office furniture market.

Looking to buy new? Sourcing from companies that use sustainable wood and non-toxic finishes are the two key factors. It may surprise you to learn that some well-known furniture manufacturers; including Herman Miller [http://www.hermanmiller.com/], Steelcase [http://www.steelcase.com/], Knoll [http://www.knoll.com/] and IKEA [http://www.ikea.com/]; all use recycled materials, low-VOC finishes and fabrics. Other smaller furniture companies using sustainable materials include EcoWork [http://www.ecowork.com/], Baltix [http://www.baltix.com/] and Haworth [http://www.haworth.com/].

6) Shine On with CFLs and LEDs

Many studies have shown that if businesses would install energy efficient lighting, even if only where it is cost effective, $12 billion a year would be saved on lighting costs and greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by 7.5 million tons – all for a few light bulbs! Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL) are the most common eco-lighting option. Today’s CFLs are affordable and versatile, available in a wide variety of shapes and intensities. If you are looking to add new fixtures along with CFL bulbs, visit Green Culture’s Eco Lights store [http://eco-lights.com/] for the widest selection.

Light-emitting diodes (LED) are the next step in efficient lighting – both more efficient and long-lasting than CFLs. North-Carolina based LLF Inc [http://www.llfinc.com/] has developed the first commercially available recessed CFL light, perfect for offices of all types.

Blessed with a sunny day outside? Simply turn off the overhead lights in the office. You’ll enjoy that natural lighting the sun provides and save money at the same time.

7) Don’t Trade That Computer – Upgrade!

Nearly all desktops and laptops are built in with the availability to upgrade to bigger hard drives, faster processors and more memory capacity. Buying one new part and having it installed into your systems is much more cost efficient and plant friendly then buying brand new computers.

Looking to buy new computers for office expansion? Go with energy efficient models, as rated by the government’s Energy Star program [http://www.energystar.gov/].

A small part or an entire computer, don’t throw it out – recycle it. Computer parts contain chemicals that are dangerous to humans, plants and animals. Visit Earth 911 [http://earth911.org/] or myGreenElectronics [http://www.mygreenelectronics.org/] for local electronic recycling locations; some will even pick them up for you.

8) Print Responsibly with Efficient Copies and Non-Toxic Toners

In a study from Queensland University of Technology in Australia, researchers found that some laser printers release enough lung-infiltrating fine particles to cause damage equal to that of second-hand smoke. Make sure to keep your employees’ workstations away from printer and copy areas. Ventilating is another key aspect of protecting your workers health.

Before buying new printers and copies, research the amount of waste from toner cartridges the machines are likely to produce – inkjets create the most waste and while all-in-one cartridges in most laser printers are less wasteful, they contain more plastic, metal and rubber (vital resources) than inkjets cartridges do. Buying remanufactures printer and copies cartridges is a major money-saving and resource conscious option for all models. The newest toner technology is solid ink, which doesn’t require a cartridge at all. So far, Xerox is one of the only companies to offer solid ink options.

While shopping, consider Kyocera Mia’s new EcoPro series of printers, made with EcoSys technology that uses long-life toner cartridges and a low cost per print.  As of January 2008, Hewlett Packard began producing its new ink cartridges with recycled plastics from all sources – including water bottles and used cartridges. In just one year, HP has used more than 5 million pounds of recycled plastic, manufacturing 200 million ink cartridges.

9) Save Waste, Water and Energy – Easily

Simple day-to-day changes in habits and facilities can lead to big savings. Here are a few tips to reduce waste, save water and use less energy:

• Turn off all electronics at the end of the day or when not in use – it is more efficient than standby or hibernation modes.
• If available, use the lower power setting on existing equipment, such as refrigerators, heating and cooling systems.
• Fix any possible leaks in faucets and water pipes – one drip can lead to big damage later on.
• Most offices always have some waste, but recycle as much as possible – nearly all plastics, paper goods, aluminum and glass can be recycled locally.

10) Last but not Least: Alternative Workspaces, Travel and Carbon Offsets

Now that your office is all up to date, it is time to consider how all your employees are making it to work each day. Encouraging carpooling is an easy way to reduce emissions related to employee travel. Also consider hosting virtual meetings and telecommuting to help both the company and its employees save on travel costs. Other benefits include fewer parking spaces needed, less employee stress, increased productivity and morale. Virtual meeting software can also be used for virtual educational seminars.

What about those carbon emissions that you just can’t avoid, like your monthly heating and cooling bill? Offset the emissions. Reducing your company’s impact is always the first step, but when you come to areas that present you will limited options, using a company like LiveNeutral [http://www.liveneutral.org/], CarbonFund [http://www.carbonfund.org/] or TerraPass [http://www.terrapass.com/] to offset the rest of your emissions will improve your eco-conscious standing with your employees and your customers.