"The city is committed to buying green products and services to reduce the use of hazardous materials and waste as a part of our Pollution Prevention Program," said Councilman Claude Mattox, District 5, and chair of the Land Use, Environment and Natural Resources Subcommittee. "To continue the city's commitment to environmentally preferable purchasing, my colleagues and I passed a resolution to establish a new EPP policy."
Following guidelines outlined by the Environmental Programs Office, the Information Technology and Finance departments facilitated the environmentally preferable computer purchase. The desktop computers, laptops and monitors purchased met EPEAT-Silver certification environmental standards.
Since July 2006, the city has purchased 3,253 computers and 247 notebooks. Through its purchases, the city has reduced energy use by 2,701,969 kWh -- enough electricity to power 238 households annually, reduced greenhouse gases equivalent to removing 168 cars from the road per year, reduced 8.6 tons of hazardous waste, avoided 538 pounds of toxic materials and saved $234,261.
All EPEAT products must meet strict mandatory criteria for environmental performance. They are then identified as EPEAT-Bronze, EPEAT-Silver, or EPEAT-Gold depending on the number of optional environmental criteria incorporated in the product.
The city of Phoenix is a champion of sustainability and supports environmental preservation through several initiatives, which encourage city staff to purchase green products that have a minimal effect on human health and the environment.
