Green Business: Green Building

DAILY OPERATIONS

Day-to-day activities are also important sources of potential environmental and health problems. NRDC also is striving to demonstrate environmental leadership with all of its office-related products and activities. A few of these are described below.

Clean Water & Water Conservation

Introduction

NRDC installed a "point of use" water filtration system due to the continuing problems with D.C.'s tap water, including frequent health standard violations in 1995 and 1996. Our dishwashers only use about 7 gallons of water compared with 20 to 25 for a standard machine and we installed aerators on the kitchen faucets that reduce water flow by about half.. In addition, as required by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1992, the AAAS building uses water-conserving fixtures in its restrooms.

Product Description
The E/2 Tech drinking water filtration system by Macke has a polypropylene pre-filter for sediment removal, and a dual media cartridge filter for contaminant removal. We previously used a reverse osmosis system which removed virtually all contaminants, but also wasted a lot of water.

The low flush toilets (1.6 gallons per flush) and urinals (1.0 gallons/flush) are made by Kohler and have excellent flushing action, addressing a problem with water-conserving fixtures that sometimes makes it necessary to flush more than once to get the job done.

Environmental Benefit
The reason for using the filtration system is that the D.C. water supply has serious water quality problems.^[25] NRDC is trying to address these problems separately, but in the meantime, NRDC employees and visitors -- especially those who are immune compromised or otherwise vulnerable (e.g. pregnant women), need protection now. Two important caveats include (1) the fact that our shower water is not filtered (a possible concern because volatile organics such as some disinfection by-products are heavily inhaled during showering) and; (2) these precautions will not necessarily protect D.C. employees and visitors who do not use filtered or protected water at home or when eating out or at other locations.

Performance and Cost
E/2 Tech's first filtration medium, a powdered activated carbon briquette, removes microorganisms down to 0.5 microns in size (such as Cryptosporidium cysts) as well as chlorine, volatile organic chemicals, and certain other organics (such as many pesticides). The second medium is a specially designed resin to remove lead and heavy metals. It has been tested to meet or exceed all of the NSF International standards for contaminant removal. The E/2 Tech system for our 50-person office costs about $70 a month, compared with approximately $175/month for bottled water.

Other Considerations
"Point of use" filtration media technology is becoming increasingly effective and inexpensive. As the Washington D.C. case shows, public water systems are not always able to provide water that tastes as good or is as clean as consumers would like, making this kind of technology a very cost effective alternative to purchasing bottled water.

Where to Get It
Macke can be reached at (800) 638-0550. For information about local Kohler plumbing product distributors, please call (920) 457-4441.

Organic Coffee

Product Description
While NRDC did not have the option of purchasing a special energy efficient coffee maker (in general, coffee makers use relatively little energy), we did make sure that the product going into the coffee maker is environmentally friendly. Thus, our new Washington office uses only certified organic coffee from the Thanksgiving Coffee Company. The coffee is certified by the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA), which is a leading organic certification organization operating internationally.

Environmental Benefit
OCIA criteria demand no use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, as well as management practices that build soil quality. Growing coffee without toxic chemicals helps protect water quality, wildlife, and the health of farmers, farm workers, and consumers. Many organic coffee farming operations prevent pollution of rivers and streams by composting and recycling organic waste materials generated during the processing of coffee beans. By raising coffee plants under the shade of biologically rich forest cover (sometimes, it is also called "shade coffee"), organic producers often provide excellent habitat for migratory birds and other species.

Performance and Cost
The coffee gets raves from staff and visitors alike and costs $6.15 per pound for dark French roast and $7.00/lb. for decaffeinated, delivered.

Other Considerations
Working jointly with the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, NRDC has published a report on how individuals and institutions can promote ecologically sound coffee production. The report, entitled Coffee, Conservation, and Commerce in the Western Hemisphere, focuses primarily on forest conservation and related environmental issues in northern Latin America.

Where to Get It
For more information, contact Thanksgiving Coffee at 1-800-462-1999.

Eco-Friendly Office Supplies

Introduction

NRDC also strives to use the most environmentally-friendly office products, generally those that offer the highest recycled content, with special emphasis on post consumer waste. As new green products come into the marketplace, NRDC samples the performance and price and compares them with existing products.

Product Descriptions

Paper Products:
100% of NRDC's copy paper needs are met using recycled-content paper of various types, ranging from 100% to 20% post-consumer recycled content.^[26] Approximately 85% of this paper is TCF (totally chlorine free) paper. NRDC purchases file folders, including manila, hanging and expanding Redrope pocket folders, and report covers that are made of 100% recycled fibers, as well as calendars that are made from recycled paper and soy ink.

Other Office Products:
NRDC buys scissors utilizing recycled plastic in the handles and pencils composed of a unique blend of recycled paper and friendly adhesives. We also use letter trays and organizers from 100% recycled plastic and steel and sheet protectors made from 100% recycled plastic. NRDC's mailing bags are 100% recycled paper and binders and indexes are made of both recycled plastics, paper and cardboard.

Environmental Benefit
TCF paper is manufactured using nature-friendly bleaching substitutes as replacements for chlorine, whose by-products have been implicated as an endocrine disrupter. Recycled-content office and paper products avoid the unnecessary cutting-down of forests and reduces the land-fill waste stream, as well as reducing the amount of raw materials used to produce these goods.

Other Considerations
NRDC is also considering computer diskettes that are magnetically cleaned, tested and reformatted. These disks formerly contained unsold or outdated software, and are otherwise destined for the landfill.

Where to Get It
Information about environmentally-friendlier office products can be obtained at EcoMall and Green Earth Office Supply.

Notes

25. The biggest problems with D.C.'s water (all of which our filters are designed to remove) are:

Microbiological Contamination, including chronic coliform bacteria violations, and the possibility of Cryptosporidium and Giardia in our water supply. Crypto and Giardia are chlorine-resistant protozoa that both have been found in D.C.'s raw (untreated) water. So far, in rather infrequent and inexact tests in which we have little faith, these protozoa have not been found in the "finished" tap water, but there are reasons to believe they might be in our tap water, at least occasionally.

Lead, which is often found in tap water in D.C. at levels above the EPA health-based "action level." D.C. has stopped testing the water for lead for "budget reasons."

Disinfection By-Products, including trihalomethanes, are found in D.C. at or above the EPA health standard for these cancer-causing, and (according to 4 recent preliminary studies) possibly birth defect-inducing chemicals,

Pesticides, including atrazine, which in June, 1996, was found at a level above EPA's health standard in the Potomac river, but which the water system insists has never been found at significant levels approaching EPA's health standard in the tap water.

26. "Post-consumer" recycling refers to material that was collected either by curb-side, pick-up or drop-off after consumers had used it. "Post-industrial" refers to reusing scrap and trimmings from industrial processes to make new product, instead of disposing of it.