Borough of Woking, United Kingdom
Purchasing Policies and Good Practice Guides - A code for environmental improvement

Abstract

In the early 1990s Woking carried out anEnvironmental Audit. Following from that, in-house operations were subjected to closer scrutiny. As a first step towards greener housekeeping a very comprehensive set of purchasing policies and good practice guides were drawn up on the following themes:

chemicals, pesticides and paints
construction materials
energy
peat
plastics
stationary
vehicles and fuel
woods and metals

The eight policies and good practice guides review the environmental issues associated with purchasing. They contain a series of recommendation that will assist in abating environmental degradation locally and globally. The connection between purchasing choices and environmental consequences is clearly stated.

Objectives

The Borough Council acknowledges its responsibility as a major purchaser of goods and services. The policies and guidelines have been drawn up to:

improve the Council's environmental performance and make it more sustainable
raise awareness of environmental issues amongst staff
make explicit the Council's commitment to conducting its functions in an environmentally responsible manner
provide a point of reference for actual and potential suppliers.

Project Status

The guidelines have been issued and adopted. Implementation is ongoing and is subject to monitoring. The policies and guidelines will require an up-date in due course.

Background information

The Environmental Audit carried out by independent consultants in 1991 identified the need for a more systematic and consistent approach to the purchasing function of the Council.

It is stated that in some areas, great attention had already been paid to the environmental effects of specifying certain products, particularly paper and the use of computer printer inks. In general, however, purchasing had been a piecemeal activity where specifying officers were not given clear guidance.

Information available and claims made by suppliers on the environmental friendliness of their products can be bewildering and confusing. Concise and correct information was needed to help those officers who make purchasing decisions. The document points out that green purchasing may be more expensive, but that it should be possible to pursue a balanced approach. A further important point stressed is the minimisation of products purchased and waste produced: "Purchasers are recommended to achieve reductions in primary usage prior to introducing recycled or other products."

Implementation

Strategy & Activities

The policies and guidelines were adopted as corporate policy. Implementation relies to a great extend on the actions of individual departments. Environmental training courses for staff are held regularly and include information on the guidelines. Induction courses for new staff contain a part on environmental issues and this includes reference to the purchasing policies and guidelines. The internal Environmental Working Group regularly reviews purchasing activities. These activities are significant in helping to raise staff awareness.

Each of the policies and guides contains a detailed action plan setting out the recommended action, identifies the lead officer, implementation time table and performance indicator(s). this forms the basis for the monitoring process.

The policies are an integral part of the wider, corporate Environmental Strategy which brings together the various environmental documents, statements, polices etc. produced by the Council and puts them into a framework which includes detailed action plans.

Partners

No external partners are involved. The success of the project relies on the co-operation of all staff and the willingness of managers and staff to make changes. Contacts with suppliers have not yet been explored in any depth. In the future it is envisaged that the guidelines and policies are used to enter into more detailed negotiations with suppliers (greening the supply chain).

Financing and Resources Used

The project was undertaken as part of the Environmental Co-ordinator's work. Monitoring, too, will be part of his/her normal work. Implementation is the responsibility of the relevant department. Any part of the guidelines and policies is subject to no additional costs being incurred: "It is therefore paramount tat these recommendation are only implemented when this can be achieved at an overall NIL cost." Managers, however, have the discretion to spend more on environmentally friendly products if they so wish and within the limits of their budgets.

Results and Impacts

The policies and good practice guides have been distributed to the various Council departments. Most of the Council sections have reviewed their purchases in the light of the recommendation. There is evidence that various actions have been taken to implement the guidelines. No comprehensive monitoring has yet taken place, various internal factors have led to delay in the monitoring process, which is now scheduled for 1997. However, significant progress has been made in the areas of energy (a separate annual report is available), stationary products and photocopy machines. Most recently the Council decided to start a new waste collection service from Council offices which will ensure that a very high percentage (approximately 80%) of the waste produced will be re-used or recycled. This will be a significant move for the Council. It will involve all members of staff, and education campaign will accompany the introduction of the new service and this will be an opportunity to raise wider issues. Eventually when the new system is in operation it is hoped that it can be used as an example for the local business community to raise awareness of related issues and to stimulate appropriate action.

Barriers and Conflicts

Council structures which more recently have favoured decentralisation of central functions such as purchasing have made "green" purchasing objectives more difficult to implement.

Gathering of information on the range of alternative products can be time consuming and details are always changing. Claims of products being "environmentally friendly" can be misleading and can be difficult to verify. There is no comprehensive and reliable system of eco-labelling.

Prices of alternative products often still make it impossible to recommend the "greener" option.

Green products can be perceived as not working as effectively as standard products or they require different handling to standard products to achieve best results.

Transferability

This project should be highly transferable. The information contained in the policies and guidelines is relevant to most local authorities and to a variety of other organisations. The action plans, of course, have to be adapted to take account of the authority's specific structures. Information on products has to be continually updated.

Lessons learned

The success of a project of this nature relies heavily on the monitoring process. This has to be tied in right at the beginning with the project and clear targets and areas of responsibility have to be identified. Woking's document sets out in great detail the recommended action and identifies the lead officer. Furthermore the implementation timetable and the performance indicator provide hard information against which to judge progress in the relevant area. However, there needs to be the will, commitment and staff time to carry out regular monitoring. Setting such polices in the context of a wider environmental strategy is very important. Such a framework gives strength to individual policies.

It is quite natural for a corporate policy of this kind to be embraced with more enthusiasm by some section than by others and therefore progress is not going to be even across the authority. However, through good internal communications those sections that are ahead can share their experience and motivate other sections to follow.

With the development of such policies and guidelines it is essential to bear in mind that information can change quickly and that new products, new technology, new processes, etc. need to be evaluated regularly. Once experience in this field has been gained it is a logical step to move on to greening the supply chain, i.e. putting some of the responsibility for proving that products and services provided are environmentally sound onto the supplier.

Additional Information

Contact

Monika Wolf
Environmental Co-ordinator
Woking Borough Council
Civic Offices
Gloucester Square
Woking GU21 1YL
United Kingdom
tel: +44-1483 / 755 855
fax: +44-1483 / 768 746