GREEN BUSINESS VIEWS

Posts Tagged ‘green business league’

In 1985, British Scientists found a growing hole in the ozone layer above Antarctica.  The conclusion was that the reduction of CFCs in refrigerants and halons in fire fighting chemicals was the best solution.  We went to work and found better ways to do the job, and now we are hearing that the ozone layer has healed and is doing much better.

The ozone layer is a big part of preventing the ultraviolet light from the sun that causes aging and wrinkle.  I for one am very much against aging and wrinkles.  However, there is always a downside.  The increase of ozone has added to the smog factor as more ozone contributes to smog making.  There is rarely a perfect solution.

The atmosphere outside is actually better than the air inside most buildings.  We spend more than 90% of our time indoors, and the EPA tells us that the indoors air can be 3 to 5 times worse than the outside air.  So, while we may take a moment’s pleasure knowing that the ozone layer is not going to fail, there is a matter much closer to home, and that is the quality of the air our homes, schools, offices, and building.

Let’s start with some basics:

First:  Your cleaning service needs to be Green.  I don’t mean Greenwashed (like so many firms), but honestly Green certified.  Unless your cleaning service has the training, equipment, and product mix required by a Green service; it simply isn’t Green.  We recommend that you require your cleaning services to be Green certified (but not by some sham online program).  Askl your cleaning service if they are certified by the Green Clean Institute, or find one that is.

Secondly: Use low-VOC paint when you remodel, choose carpet that is recycled, and any glue should be low-VOCS as well.  Be careful in choice of furniture that will continue to dry and outgas for months.  And change the air filters according to the recommended schedule.

Thirdly: Take your company through an assessment process with the Green Business League.  They have consultants nationwide who will help improve the indoor air quality, suggest cost-savings Green practices, and show your company how to Go Green legitimately.  (Avoid Greenwashing solutions that will embarrass your company later on.)

A Green office or building is a healthy building.  We have some lessons to learn about how long-term exposure impacts the workers in any business.  These are a company’s biggest asset.  There needs to be a better program to keep them healthy and highly productive.

If your company is going Green, the Green Business League is the company to trust.  With a wave of sham Green certifications offers by website purchase, companies are being duped into a cheap and unethical way to obtain their Green certification.   The Green Business League offers the only Greenwashing-proof certification available.  Every GBL Green business certification is the result of a live audit and Green improvement process.

I have had a number of people ask me how Green Business League could certify a gas station of all things.  After all, they deal in petroleum products, you know?  This is a good question, but let’s take a look as the ideology of Green Business League.   Simply stated, the basic concept is that “The environmental crisis is a universal problems that requires universal participation.”  The concept rings true, but can it be that inclusive?

Let me first point out that there is no 100% environmentally compliant company.  So, we are really talking about improved performance rather than perfection.  This opens the door to any number of businesses even though they may seem unlikely candidates.  The CITGO gas station in Deerfield, Illinois was a very progressive operation.  Owner, David Welch, had been working on Greening up his business before meeting Izz Kharasch, a Certified Green Consultant, but found an ally in his quest to be a serious Green business and community leader for the environmental cause.

David employs a variety of energy saving ideas to cut his energy bill including a timer that shuts off equipment when the store is closed.  In the picture provided, this CITGO station captures the rainwater from the roof which is then used to irrigate the xeriscaped greenery that now enhanced the landscape of the gas station.  Inside his store, David has a section dedicated to Green products from his clients, and of course he proudly displays the Green Business League certification seal on his door, but has even placed the logo on the water collection barrels of this store.

To promote a greater Green awareness, David has announced a “Go Green, Get Green Scholarship” program that targets juniors and seniors in local schools.  David offers a combination of cash prizes and gas cards for Deerfield High School students can obtain a card that is punched at every visit.  Completed cards are deposited for the drawing, and the message is that Going Green has rewards.  Embedding environmental values into the upcoming generation is one of the best ideas we have seen in any business.

Gasoline is a commodity that can be used well or used badly.  The community is better off in many ways because of the example that is being lived out every day at the Deerfield CITGO gas station.  David reports an increase in traffic by area resident who will actually go out of their way to do business at a Green gas station.  The fundamental issue is that every business takes ownership of the environmental crisis concerns and that steps are taken to make progress at every level.  There should be no business excluded from the Green program, and the Deerfield CITGO gas station has proven to be a stellar example of environmental commitment.  The Green Business League can help any business earn a Green business certification that recognizes environmental advancement.  Give them a call.

Taking a federal courthouse Green is not an easy task.  This process began many months before the actually audit was conducted.  All that hard work paid off in a big way as the Gerald R Ford Federal Building and Court House earned 540 point under a Green Business League review making it a “Titanium Level” Green business certification.   The Gerald R Ford Federal Building is located in Grand Rapid, MI and have been served by the Hope Network janitorial services guided by David Bouck, a Certified Green Consultant.

This build has already made strides as a Green facility.  It has earned an Energy Star rating.  A full energy audit has been conducted, and advanced lighting has been installed.  Motion detectors and timers control certain lights, and powerstrips are used to prevent phantom energy loss.

HEPA vacuums replace older vacuums in the cleaning process, and Green cleaning products are used throughout the building.  The building is being painted with low-VOC paint, and floor mats at entry areas to trap dirt and debris before it gets into the building.  Recycling programs include more than trash.  Computer equipment is recycled, recycled carpeting is used for new carpeting projects, and a water filtration system eliminates the need for disposable water bottles.

On the outside, xeriscaping lowers the demand for watering, fertilizer, and pesticides.  Drip irrigation allows plants to thrive while conserving water.  Paper reduction strategies can reduce waste as well, and the building buys non-chlorine-bleached paper.

Executive Order 13514 was signed last fall by President Obama requiring federal agencies to apply a variety of environmental practices.  This is not an overnight process, not it is a simple process.  The executive order requires that a sustainability officer prepare a sustainability plan for each facility.  David Bouck, as a Certified Green Consultant, was able to perform a variety of tasks for the Gerald R Ford building, and has greatly assisted in the compliance of the building.

The Green Business League reports great pride in certifying an outstanding example of a Green operation in Grand Rapids, MI.  Green certification is a valuable asset to any business.

The state of Illinois recognizes a serious problem with the amount of trash going our of businesses, schools, and government facilities.  This is a national problem, but the most effective solutions come from initiatives with a grass root involvement.

the governor of Illinois, Pat Quinn, recently signed SB99 into law, which encourages food waste to be commercially composted within the state and sold all throughout the country. Current Illinois rules provide only that business owners have the option to compost locally, but cannot transport their organic composting to another location or sell it.

This new law also gives businesses the ability to separate their food scraps from garbage to be composted into a reuasable product.  The composting law goes into effect in January of 2010.  Indiana and Iowa already have similar laws promoting composting projects.  Organic waste comprises about 20% of munipal solid waste, and can provide a rich soil additive once the composting process is completed.  Illinois is finally stepping up to the smart way to handle the increasingly troublesome problem of land fill management.

The founder and executive director of SCARCE (School & Community Assistance for Recycling and Composting Education), Kay McKeen, says this type of composting will benefit both the local environment and the general economy.  “This bill will benefit farmers, haulers, businesses, and is good for the soil, our water and for the environment,” remarks McKeen. “There are bills out there that are good for everyone and this is one of them.”  It seems that no one would disagree since trash in a huge problem with immense attached costs.

All states must continue to follow U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) regulations and retrieve permits while making such changes, the new legislation allows smaller composters to get started.   A new form of business will emerge for those interested in a new green job or business.  Every city should start project to collect and compost their organic trash.  Of course, the ability to sell the final product is another source of revenue.  Many composting projects sell their composted soil to farmers who can enrich their soil without fertilizers.

Certain businesses like grocery stores, restaurants, schools, and assisted living homes seem like the best sources for composting projects.  The first challenge is to organize the project in a way that allows free enterprise to pay for the cost rather than another charge to the local government.  This opens the door for an enterprising person to get the sanction of local official to collect the separated wast and take it to a site for composting.  It would seem that the investment is light compared to a steady environmentally-driven opportunity.

The new Illinois law excludes food scraps from the definition of normal garbage.  The new definition of garbage will speed up the new composting effort and reduce the cost of obtaining permits.  When food scraps are defined as trash, the ability to compost is nearly prohibited.  This new law is smart legislation that has immediate and profound impact on a variety of environmental benefit as well as the creation new green jobs.

It may seem like a old idea, but it is still a good idea. Innovation is a hundred times better than governmental solutions. Proof of this has recently come across my desk as I reviewed the latest wind turbine ideas. A Massachusetts company called FlowDesign has recreated the problematic large-bladed wind turbine concept. This is proof of the fundamental idea that private industry needs encouragement rather than more regulation.

We might note that even the renown T Boone Pickens has all but abandoned the great wind turbine project that he so heartily championed a year ago. The good idea relied on the belief that these huge windmills would produce large amounts of “free energy.”  The cost of installation and the ongoing operational costs made this project unfeasible.  The late-arriving realization is that the huge windmills are costly, unsightly, and not very efficient.

I had long said that the windmill solution is the problem child of the alternative energy sector because it has so many downsides. Windmills can be noisy, visually unattractive, liability threats, and costly to install. Also, they do not work in light wind and cannot operate in high winds. This leaves a smaller window for energy production. Lastly, we must consider the actual energy conversion. Wind power, as much as we like the idea, is not as simple a solution as it sounds.

FlowDesign has adapted the traditional windmill to something that resembles jet engine technology. The unit is smaller, allows wider wind speed margins, and is more efficient in energy production. You have to ask why we spent so many million (or billions) on a solution that seems like a flashback to the Dutch windmill era?

The same question can be applied to the GFL bulb that has minute amounts of mercury in the bulb. We know that the disposal of millions of these bulbs creates yet another ecological hazard. The better solution seems to be the LED lights that have large scale applications in every lighting situtation. Organic LED adds greater reason to put this on the fast track for broad application.

Finally, I have to ask why are we still chasing ethanol from corn? The logic is quickly lost as we realize that it takes food out the of the system to generate fuel for our cars. The obvious genius of hydrogen power calls for a Manhattan-like project to make hydrogen cheap to produce. Thinking of fuel from water is simply too good to bypass.

As we face an energy crisis in the foreseeable future, the government’s penchant for throwing money at pet projects, pork barrel dead ends, and faulty ideas should stop. I advocate that the smart money should go to create tax incentives and funding for smart technology that will break the back of the the ugly issues threatening our livelihood on many levels. The current administration has already eclipsed the spending mania of past presidents. Congress has passed budgetary bills that had made our national debt a nightmare, and the public voice seems lost on those we voted into power. This frustration should lead to a mid-term election change where Americans will speaks their mind.

What is needed is not more regulation, taxation, and misguided solutions; but the smart kind of solutions that will take our country to the leaders of the Green technology and innovation. With the loss of manufacturing jobs and the large unemployment rate now hurting our economy, it is time to take a strong leadership position with great ideas that will make our country better, not poorer. I sincerely hope that we see more innovation like the ideas coming from FloDesign.

Any company looking to radically improve their Green IQ should work toward their Green business certification by contacting the Green Business League. If any firm wishes to send their in-house staff to Green Officer Training, consider an upcoming three day training event. In other words, let’s take on the challenge as smart business and do not wait for legislation to make a needful task into a loathsome and expensive burden.