Think about the cost of mowing a sizable lawn.  It looks good when it is newly mowed and weed free, but at what cost?  Lawnmowers are said to be produce more CO2 than four cars.  The manpower, energy consumption, and related costs make large lawns a costly extravagance.  Campus sized complexes are a larger-than-necessary expense that may not be the best landscaping choice.

New attitudes toward large lawns include the thoughtful conversion of the property to flowering fields.  When does with modest planning, the property is even more enjoyable than large plots of mowed grass.  Employees enjoy sitting beside these areas as butterflies swarm the area.  Flowering fields are literally a restoration of what field what America was like before urbanization. 

As fields replace lawns in part, the cost of mowing goes down, and enjoyment goes up.  Why not?  Flowering fields is another example of doing the right thing in a manner that has no real downside.  It also begs the question as to why this hasn’t been thought of before this?  Other than the minor effort to prepare the ground, converting part of the lawn to flowering areas is a literally no-brainer kind of decision.

Flowering fields not only reduce mowing.  They do not need as much water, fertilizer, or pesticide application.  Fields can be created new every year and mixed with flowering plants that bloom throughout the year.  Though a small consideration in the sustainability planning of the company, smarter landscaping will add value and enjoyment while lowering costs.  Once again, Going Green is not only better for the environment.  It is also a smart business decision.

Your building has hundreds of small cracks or holes that were never intended. Buildings are generally not built to exact tolerances.  Air gaps are found around the foundation and floor, around windows and doors, and most places where wires and pipes make their entry.  You will find more around inset ceiling lights, attic accesses, air conditioners, vents, and flues.

When they are all added up, the average home or building has the equivalent of a two foot by two foot hole in the side of the building.  Imagine the impact on your bill, summer or winter, from such a flaw in building design or upkeep.  Fresh air addicts have been know to crack windows in the dead of winter.  As stated, there is a price to be paid in this energy-worried world for such ignorance.

Now, consider that every cubic foot of heated or cooled air in the facility has a dollar value.  As heated air escapes or cold air invades, money is lost.  This is a constant loss factor moderated only by the heat differential between the inside and outside air.  Unfortunately, most people feel helpless to day anything more than adjust their thermostat to more uncomfortable levels.

By the way, the more energy your home or business uses, the larger your energy bill will be.  Take note that that extra energy also has a carbon value.  Heavy energy use increases the carbon footprint, as well as boosts the energy costs.  Finally, the cost of energy will not be going down.  We all know that the ugly truth about the dwindling supply of fossil fuel and the increasing world demand.

Like many environmental practices, the cost of sealing a building is not a big expense.  It requires a few tubes of caulking, a bit of insulation for packing crevices, and perhaps felt or door weeps for doors.  The whole thing should be less than $50 for most buildings.  The return on investment should be very quick.

If there are areas without insulation, like attics or crawlspaces; do what you can to keep some barrier to heat or colling loss.  It makes no sense to delay a process that has immediate and continuing financial rewards.

Finally, seal all duct joints and insulate any ductwork that is exposed to outside air.  This is true of attics and basements.  Why try to heat or cool these areas?  In days of ample fuel and very low prices, these insulating efforts had little true value.  We all know that the world has changed and oil prices are no longer $25 to $30 per barrel, but now at $100 or more per barrel.  With no relief in sight, the idea of being a more energy efficient home, building or office is just good sense and smart economics.

Point value: ……

I also note that my room had CFL bulbs.  I was impress to find paper cups for coffee, but then there were plastic wrapped, plastic cups for water.  While I was not given a tour of the facility, I struggled to find other evidences of a Green operation.

My hopes were raised when I saw greenery in the lobby and on each floor near the elevator, but then a quick feel told me that they were silk and plastic.

There are more than 100 ideas that can be applied to hotels found in the Green Path system.  So, while it is obvious commendable to do a couple of Green items, there is much left to be done.

This stereotypical behavior is called “Token Green” or “Green Minimalism.”  At least this hotel made no public claim to be Green even though they were making some efforts.

Here’s a word to the wise, hotels should appoint someone to act as their Green officer, which may even be your manager, your purchasing director, or someone over operations.  Have that person sign onto the Green Path software and begin checklisting the various items that can build a realistic Green program.  To validate your progress, make sure to get the audit when the software tells you that you are ready for certification.

I was reminded of this issue when I visited yet another hotel where I found the customer notice, “Help Save Water, Help Save the World.”  Essentially, it instructed the guests to throw used towels on the floor so that not all towels need to be laundered.  Other times we are told to not request bed linen changes every day.  Neither request is a problem for me, so I accept the challenge to be a Greener tourist or business traveler.

Then I walked out of the room to find the service cart holding a non-HEPA vacuum, the cleaning fluids with health warnings on the label, and the paper products that were not recycled.  I also noted that the plastic water bottles in my room that are single use bottles instead of the biodegradable kind.

As a skilled observer and frequent traveler, I’ve seen little use of electric saving devices or lights.  Waste is not managed, and hotels tend to simply throw out old furniture and equipment faster than other businesses.

Yet, I note that several of these hotels want their customers to know that they are Green hotels.  That passes for hotel humor, I guess.  Frankly, knowing what I do from the Green Path system, I am generally very disappointed in most hotels, but there are a few exceptions like the Caribe Hilton in Puerto Rico that has gone Green in big ways.

The worst example that I ever came across was a well-publicized hotel shuttle service serving hotel guests out of the Chicago O’Hare airport.  They even proclaim their Green shuttle on their billboards.  When I asked why this conventional, diesel-powered bus was Green; the driver shrugged his shoulders and could not answer the question.  Not even the desk clerk could tell me why the shuttle was Green.  I decided to figure it out on my own, so I asked more questions.

Well, it came down to this.  Several hotels within a half-mile range of each other had pooled together to use the same shuttle and that pooled effort made the shuttle “Green”!  Kudos for the idea, but it still demonstrates how little these hotels really know about a Green or sustainable program.

The picture used for this article has a hotel “Painted Green,” and it calls itself “The Green Hotel.”

Let me suggest that hotels use the free software from the EcoPath Assessment program.  During the sign-up, enter “Hotel” as your industry type.  You will find that a unique set of hotel-related, Green improvements.  They are all very effective and many of them are money savers.  Work the system until you have enough points for certification, and then request that an auditor review your work.  You can then tell the world that your hotel is Green, and every reason that the public will have confidence to believe your environmental boasts.

Skype, Google, and other services offer text, voice, and video to virtually everyone.  Skype, for example, provides calls nationally and internationally at no charge if both parties have Skype service.  This is very handy and allows international calls with good quality of sound and video.

Buying Energy Star equipment is the simplest way to improve your computer equipment.  Some companies, such as HP, promise to take back used equipment which they will recycle for you.

Relocate your website onto a Green server. The best Green servers use alternative power, i.e., wind and solar, employ hi-efficiency servers, and provide “Cloud Technology” to shut down unnecessary equipment.

Smart phones are a Green IT option, although they should be recycled.  Smart phones increase productivity, streamline communication and reduce resource demands.

SaaS (Software as a Service) is the latest generation of computer advancement.  With SaaS applications, the programming and data can exist on the server rather than your computers.  This reduces the cost of buying software, lowers the demand for super computers on your site, and cuts energy consumption.  Some examples of SaaS programs are billing online, payroll services, and video conferencing.

E-Faxing eliminates the need for fax machines, reduces paper and ink demand, and lowers your phone bill.
Webinars and web-based training cut down on travel, reduce manpower requirements, and allow for constant updating of off-site staff.

Virtual Officing reduces traffic and gas consumption.

These, and many other similar ideas, are part of the Green IT program we offer offices and businesses.  You don’t have to be a techie to implement the Green IT program for your company.  The sustainability plan for your company can grow to include many, hopefully all, of these suggestions.  Make sure your Green Officer re-evaluates your sustainability plan every month to monitor improvement and watch for new ideas.  A sustainability plan is a “work in progress” and your appointed Green Officer should remain focused on the value of the plan to the company.

1800Recycle.com is a site dedicated to locating recycling centers. The website assists in locating companies that not only recycle trash, but accept such items as plastic, electronics, paper, glass and metal, and automotive, yard, household, and hazardous waste. This site is a resource for what can be recycled, as well as a locator for recycling centers.

You will find that many stores like Staples set up bins for used plastic bags – a good start. Other stores, such as BestBuy, will collect your computer equipment for recycling.
Consider donating your used furniture, computers, or other useful items to charitable or educational organizations such as Veterans of America. They give many items a second life.

Going Green becomes a way of life if you keep the vision in place long enough. It helps to have a Green Officer appointed for your firm who will train your staff in applying the Green Awareness program. Rather than seeing the process as an imposition, those that build a Green program will reap the best rewards.

Hotels should know about a mattress recycling program that will keep these bulky objects out of land fills. Www.ohiomattressrecovery.com is one of the few organizations that accepts or buys mattresses, tears them apart, and makes the materials available for recycling. If there is no mattress recovery facility in your area, why not sponsor a Green jobs project to establish one?

Potential Green Practices Value … 5 to 10 points
(Sign up for the EcoPath Assessment – It is Free to Use)

Many companies receive supplies, products, and equipment wrapped, secured, and delivered on pallets, skids, trays, and boxes.

The Green Supply Chain concept stresses looking at the vulnerable elements of the goods that a company might require.  A popular tactic is to reduce the amount of packaging, but that is not all there is to a serious program.

Carefully examine the extra materials used in delivering your supplies or products.  Skids, pallets, and trays of wood and plastic should not be single-use items.  If your company currents disposes of these extra delivery items, this process is incurring additional costs and is unnecessarily wasteful.  Trucks making these deliveries do not lack room, having dropped off a good portion of their load at your door.  It’s a minor imposition to require your vendors and providers to provide a return cycle for these excess delivery sundries.  The waste that results from single-use pallets, skids, and trays is inexcusable in this time of environmental stress.  These items are a part of the packaging process, even if they are not typically viewed as such.  We encourage a review of this area of concern in the course of developing a more sustainable program.  These changes need not be implemented all at once – a Green business takes at least three years to achieve a notable level of Green maturity.

Potential Green Practices Value … 5 to 20 points
(EcoPath offers more than 500 Green solutions for any business)

While many think the Green program is about saving energy or recycling projects, there are many easy-to-implement projects that will not be a strain on your time or budget.  When you look around, you will find that we are in a “paper intense” world.  This abundance creates many opportunities for improvement by the aspiring Green business.

Your Green Path program is a holistic program, allowing the Green Officer of the company to zero in on a variety of easily applied changes for the company.  The Green Officer, however, is the liaison for such ideas that should spread throughout the company in a coordinated fashion.  Some ideas are simple, some require a little more effort, and others necessitate a sizable commitment.

When it comes to paper saving, the lifecycle analysis is more powerful than you might think.  Pulp-making is an ongoing pollution nightmare, and paper products constitute about 63% of out domestic trash output.  So there is more to gain than efficiency and cost savings in reducing paper use.

An easy first step: cancel phonebooks, catalogs, and junk mail coming into your office.  Much of this is like “old-school spam” that we tolerated in the past but should no longer accept today.

There are services that will help you with “un-listing” many of these paper deliveries.  They are not perfect, so try to hack away at this, both personally and throughout the company.  Cancel or opt-out of incoming mail by returning it as “Refused” with instructions to cancel the subscription.  Try services such as http://www.41pounds.org, http://www.ecocycle.org, or http://www.stopthejunkmail.com.

Magazines in waiting areas, previously in constant need of updating and organizing, can be replaced by a variety of more productive resources. Alternatives are:

• TVs or monitors
• Computer stations in high-traffic waiting areas
• Wireless access for the growing number of smart phones and iPads

Phone books and catalogs are now in the same category as cassette tapes, once CDs where introduced.  Today, everything we need to find is more easily accessed and updated online – these items are obsolete.  Not only is junk mail annoying, it is an enormous waste of money.  In the end, we all pay for it in the hidden cost of the product. Given all its negatives, stopping it should be at the top of our “To-Green” list.

In the Green Awareness training for your employees, revisit this topic frequently.  Make this one of the routine parts of your company’s sustainability plan.  It will cost your company nothing and will improve the Green IQ of your operation.

Potential Green Practices Value … 5 to 10 points

Our goal is to show each and every one of our members that the Green Path Program is more than saving the world, it is also smart business.  It is a healthy, efficient business program that can pay for itself in 12 to 24 months, or less – a much better return on investment than the LEED examples of 10 to 12 years on capital-intense projects.

An obvious and exciting business-friendly idea that will benefit virtually any Green business is the biometric time-clock.  If your company has more than a few employees, you are well aware of the cost in man-hours of keeping track of employees, reporting weekly numbers, and ensuring employees are not able to “circumvent” the system.

The biometric time-clock provides the perfect solution to these employee issues.  It allows employees to check in and out by fingerprint recognition and personal ID code.  It is no longer possible for a buddy to clock in or out for his or her fellow worker…who will most likely return the favor.

When it comes to payback, your company will save on timecards as well as the labor of printing, delivering and collecting them.  What also must be taken into account are the man hours required to transfer the information into the payroll or accounting system.

The efficiency of buying one of these devices for a few hundred dollars is so obvious that it cannot be ignored.  The old paper method of time-tracking has cost businesses hundreds of thousands of dollars.  The savings in employee fraud will be considerable as well.  There is no need for intense study of this application – the evidence is easily found.

A small thumb version can be used for keeping track of employees, security people, and even employees working from home.  The software can make hourly requests for desk time which would be only a minor time constraint with great results.

An added advantage of biometric time-clocks is that they feed directly into your company’s accounting system.  The process is seamless, simple to use, and smart for business.  Payroll is one of the largest financial investments of any business.  Refining the antiquated process of time-tracking can be simplified by these new solutions, and there is no down-side to the installation of this system.

The EcoPath program highly recommends the biometric time-clock system.  These systems have shown to be more accurate and effective than the lanyard ID cards used in many closed-business environments.

Potential Green Practices Value … 8 to 16 points
(Expect a new list of Green solutions from the Green Path Guide every month)

Those plastic and silk plants in your office may be easy to maintain, but they are not helping your office.  One of the items in your sustainability plan should be the inclusion of some live, green plants.  A NASA study tested the value of live plants in a closed environment – the study was very revealing.

You probably already know that plants absorb carbon dioxide (which will make employees feel tired) and emit oxygen (which makes employees more energetic).  People prefer living plants because they create a positive atmosphere in the workplace.  We have a strong relationship with living things – that’s why sitting under a fake tree in the mall will never equal enjoying a live tree in the park.

Results from a NASA study are more alarming. Offices are saturated with years of fumes, contaminants and gases that act like an unseen, toxic cloud in the workplace.  Workers spend year after year in these closed environments, seriously impacting productivity, sick days, and medical claims.  The NASA study found a number of environmentally-friendly office plants that will, literally, suck the contaminants out of the air while adding back fresh oxygen.

As shown in the study, installing live plants is smart, effective and not very costly if you replace a few plants per month.  Encourage your employees to participate in an “Adopt-a-Plant” program so that all plants receive the care they need.  Or, simply find a service that will provide plants for your office and take care of them as well.

Plant short list
Six plants were shortlisted for Office Plant of the Year: (Your Green Consultant can provide even more choices)

• Chlorophytum ‘Mandarin’
• Sansevieria
• Spathiphyllum
• Chamaedorea seifrizi
• Dracaena Rikki
• Dracaena steudneri

Potential Green Practices Value … 5 points
(If your company uses plants more effectively, the Green audit will apply more points)