Including environmental language in requests for proposals and contracts increases the likelihood that your team’s procurement goals will be respected by your vendors.
Consider incorporating the general language below into new contracts and requests for proposals. The EPA Purchasing Database is also an excellent source for specific product and service categories.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have adopted an environmental policy to improve its environmental performance. To further these goals, products and services contracted for by the Pirates will be evaluated in part based on their environmental attributes. Specific factors to be considered include:
- Greenhouse gas emissions
- Habitat impacts
- Regulatory compliance
- Recycled content
- Energy efficiency
- Water efficiency
- Toxic chemical reduction
Please address these concerns when submitting your proposals.
Including language related to environmental concerns in contracts helps solidify your team’s commitment to ecological progress. Environmentally intelligent contract language can incorporate a wide range of environmental objectives. For example, a contract with an advertiser at a stadium could specify or encourage that all advertisements be printed on recycled paper; a contract with a food delivery service could specify that it will use fuel efficient vehicles and purchase carbon credits to offset total vehicle miles traveled; a contract with a food vendor could include provisions for giving priority to local suppliers and for composting food waste. The possibilities are many.
Vermont Environmentally Preferable Cleaners RFP
City of Seattle Cleaning Products RFP
Energy Star Appliances Procurement Language
EPA Heating Systems
EPA Contract Language Database
National Recycling Coalition – Growing a Buy-Recycled Program: A Manager’s Guide
American Recycling Markets, Inc – Recycled Products Guide