Thursday 18 December 2003

NZ Police walk the clean and green beat

The New Zealand Police and the Ministry for the Environment have joined forces to keep the country's police stations clean and green with the first syndicated procurement contract for environmental-friendly cleaning services.

"Syndicated procurement" contracts allow agencies to use their collective buying power to negotiate better value for money for goods and services. Now, for the first time, a syndicated procurement contract has also opened the door to obtain environmental benefits for the same cost.

"I'm very pleased NZ Police are leading the way having worked with our Sustainable Industry group to ensure emphasis is placed on maintaining their work places in an environmental-friendly way," said Barry Carbon, chief executive of the Ministry for the Environment.

"NZ Police are about to sign a cleaning contract which includes waste reduction, recycling, reducing toxicity of cleaning products and energy conservation.

"Police have negotiated a contract which provides the services they need and benefits for the environment, for the same or less cost over all," said Mr Carbon.

"This is smart money management and smart environmental management too."

The service level agreement requires design of zero waste plans suitable for each of the police facilities, waste audits and documentation that sorted recyclables have been diverted from landfill. Syndicated procurement allows other agencies to buy these services at the same price structure.

Syndicated procurement cleaning contract parties will be encouraged to source products such as cleaning chemicals, sanitary papers and rubbish bags that meet the Environmental Choice New Zealand (www.enviro-choice.org.nz ) specifications or equivalent.

In New Zealand, Environmental Choice is the official environmental labelling programme and is run by the New Zealand Eco-labelling Trust. This programme, which commenced in 1992, operates independently from the government but the label is government owned and endorsed.

Environmental labelling makes a positive statement by identifying a product as less harmful to the environment, over the whole of its life cycle.

The Ministry for the Environment's Sustainable Industry group is also working with seven other government agencies specifically on waste reduction programmes with results to be reported in 2004.

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