Creating a Planet-Friendly Office
by Annette McMichael

Naturally, we all care about the environment. And, most of us make some attempt to reuse, recycle and cut waste at home. But, do you transfer this same dedication to the office?

Green Business is Good For The Bottom Line.
Operating a green business is not only good for the environment but good for your business's bottom line. Conserving resources and cutting down on waste saves money. Whether you run a home-based business or a large company, doing a few simple things can make your business environment-friendly.

Here are ten easy-to-implement ideas for running a green business. (Source: Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade)

1. Turn off equipment when it's not being used. This can reduce the energy used by 25 percent; turning off the computers at the end of the day can save an additional 50 percent.
   
   
2. Encourage communications by email, and read email messages onscreen to determine whether it's necessary to print them. If it's not, don't!
   
   
3. Reduce fax-related paper waste by using a fax-modem and by using a fax cover sheet only when necessary. Fax-modems allow documents to be sent directly from a computer, without requiring a printed hard copy. (Check out www.efax.com to set up a free electronic fax account.)
   
   
4. Produce double-sided documents whenever possible. Print internal documents in draft mode if your printer has the option.
   
   
5. Do not leave taps dripping; always close them tightly after use. (One drop wasted per second wastes 2,640 gallons per year.)
   
   
6. Install displacement toilet dams in toilet reservoirs. Placing one or two plastic containers filled with stones [not bricks] in the toilet's reservoir will displace about a gallon of water per flush - a huge reduction of water use over the course of a year.
   
   
7. Find a supply of paper with maximum available recycled content.
   
   
8. Choose suppliers who take back packaging for reuse.
   
   
9. Instigate an ongoing search for "greener" products and services in the local community. The further your supplies or service providers have to travel, the more energy will be used to get them to you.
   
   
10. Before deciding whether you need to purchase new office furniture, see if your existing office furniture can be refurbished. Or, check out used furniture. It's less expensive than buying new and better for the environment.

Ten more tips worth considering…

1. Buy an insulated coffee carafe to keep coffee hot. Pour a pot of coffee into the carafe once it’s finished brewing and turn off your coffee pot. Use ceramic mugs—Styrofoam can’t be recycled.
   
   
2. Shopping for a printer? Consider the energy costs associated with each kind. There are basically two types of printers: laser & ink jet. While lasers are the most popular because of their high quality, they draw an average of 80-100 watts or more when printing. Ink jets, the most energy efficient of all, use about 10 watts.
   
   
3. Use CFL light bulbs everywhere. Not only are you using less energy, you’ll save about $38 over the life of one light bulb. (Look for the Energy Saver star on the label.
   
   
4. Recycle everything, including computers and other electronics. Check out www.Earth911.org to locate recycling centers near you.
   
   
5. For the outdoors, eliminate as much grass as possible from your office landscaping. Replace with perennial wildflowers, natural grasses and trees.
   
   
6. Work from home one day a week. If all Americans avoided work travel one day a week we’d cut 143 billion pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Check tire pressure of your vehicle(s) frequently. Correctly inflated tires means better gas mileage.
   
   
7. If your business has a vehicle fleet check tire pressure frequently. Correctly inflated tires means better gas mileage.
   
   
8. Have your heating & air unit checked out seasonally. Consider  a more energy efficient unit if yours is outdated. It  might be less expensive in the long term to upgrade. Turn the thermostat up in the summer and down in the winter. (Buy all of your staff wool socks in the winter!) Keep space-heater use to a bare minimum. They’re big energy hogs.
   
   
9. Recycle. (Duh!) If you use a shredding service, make sure the paper is being recycled. Triad Shredding, for example, recycles its shredded paper. And, Interstate All Battery Center accepts almost all types of batteries for recycling.
   
   
10. Sell your planet-friendly ideas to bosses, co-workers, and/or your staff.

      Make it fun. Keep it simple.

By adopting some of these ideas you’ll feel good about making a contribution towards halting global warming. We all need to try harder. I intend to. How about you?