Purchasing & Small Business

Green Procurement Program

Green Procurement Program (GPP) is the purchase of environmentally preferable products and services in accordance with one or more of the established Federal “green” procurement preference programs. To prevent waste and pollution, these programs require Executive agencies to consider environmental impacts, along with price, performance, and other traditional factors, when making purchasing decisions. The following categories are addressed in the Federal and DoD green procurement program:

  • Products manufactured from recovered materials,
  • Environmentally preferable products,
  • Energy-efficient products,
  • Non-ozone depleting substances.
  • Recycled content products,
  • Environmentally preferable products and services,
  • Biobased products, energy- and water-efficient products,
  • Alternate fuel vehicles and alternative fuels,
  • Products using renewable energy, and
  • Alternatives to hazardous or toxic chemicals

All federal procurement officials are required by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and Executive Order (EO) 13101, Greening the Government through Waste Prevention, Recycling, and Federal Acquisition, to assess and give preference to those products and services that are environmentally preferable. Environmentally preferable products and services are defined as those that “have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment when compared to other products and services that serve the same purpose. The FAR Part 23 addresses government policy on acquisition of recycled content, environmentally preferable and energy-efficient products and services; Part 7 of the FAR emphasizes consideration of the environmental and energy impacts of acquisition.

Green procurement practices also play a key role in enhancing transportation efficiency and sustainable buildings. The GPP applies to all acquisitions from major systems programs to individual unit supply and service requisitions.

AcqLinks and References:

Updated: 8/10/2021

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