Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Green Office Guide
Green Office Guide
Green Office
Resource
Guide
For ClimateSmart Buildings
March 2009
Contents
Green office resource guide
1.0
2.0
Introduction
3.0
Why go green?
4.0
4.1
4.2
Lighting
4.3
4.4
Air-conditioning
4.5
5.0
Procurement policies
5.1
5.2
5.3
Paper products
6.0
7.0
7.1
7.2
8.0
8.1
8.2
9.0
2.0 Introduction
Sitting in an office environment, it is hard to
visualise how our activities are impacting on
the environment. Issues, such as air pollution,
global climate change, deforestation, landfills,
water availability, biodiversity, chemical
pollution, eutrophication and soil erosion,
seem very distant and unrelated to the
activities we undertake at work.
It is now recognised that climate change and
carbon management is a critical issue that
must be addressed through innovation and
intricate collaboration.
Governance
It is evident that environmental practices are
imperative to the sustainability of the office
environment. In April 2007, the Queensland
Government announced its role in meeting a
national greenhouse gas emissions reduction
target of 60 per cent of 2000 levels by 2050
through the Climate Smart 2050 initiative
Queensland climate change strategy 2007: a
low carbon future.
Principles
The principles of this guide are to be suitably
adapted to the operation of respective offices
to facilitate reductions in energy use and cost,
water use and cost, waste production, and
greenhouse gas emissions.
Ultimately the policies and practices
employed in this guide are encouraged to
become a part of an individuals natural work
routine. This Green Office Resource Guide is
a means of increasing staff awareness of the
environmental impacts associated with daily
work practices and encourage and facilitate
environmentally friendly work alternatives.
The participation in a sustainable office
environment will no doubt have positive effects
of the individual. It is our goal to encourage
a sense of ownership within the individual
of these environmental policies, where an
individual can easily apply similar policies to
their home as well as the workplace.
Practices
This Green Office Resource Guide provides
a great way for staff to learn more about
environmental issues and what can be done at
work to reduce their ecological impact.
This guide also provides an opportunity for
staff to engage in behavioural management
problem solving and work as part of a team to
achieve environmental change.
A green office self-reporting assessment
system has been developed in this guide to
provide management with sufficient ways
to calculate the effectiveness of green office
recommendations, and provide incentives
to staff so that the process of saving the
environment is not conveyed as a chore.
Replace any existing 50W halogen downlights with 20W. This gives a similar lighting
effect using only 40 per cent of the energy.
4.2 Lighting
Use natural light wherever possible By
using natural light to illuminate the office
environment you can save a significant
amount of energy and associated
greenhouse gas emissions.
Replace traditional incandescent bulbs with
fluorescent bulbs to reduce running costs by
up to 75 per cent and energy consumption by
20-30 per cent. Fluorescent lights produce
much less heat than incandescent lights, and
also last up to 10 times longer, so you would
also save on cooling costs in summer.
4.4 Air-conditioning
Did you know?
Climate control accounts for about 40 per cent
of an offices total energy use. The opportunity
for big savings in energy efficiency can be
found in your heating, cooling, and ventilation
(HVAC) systems.
Use natural ventilation and fans where
possible.
Set air-conditioner systems to a minimum of
24C.
If air-conditioning is used, close all windows
and doors to reduce the escape of cool air.
If the machine has adjustable louvres, adjust
them towards the ceiling when cooling, and
towards the floor when heating (as cool air
falls, hot air rises).
Switch off heating and cooling after hours.
4.5 Other
There are numerous other areas within an
office environment where energy use can be
reduced by a significant amount. Appliances
in other personal and shared workspaces,
such as the kitchen, should be switched off
when not in use. These policies are designed
to become a part of the strategic direction
of office environmental management. It is
recommended that the initiative of a green
team or green staff member is introduced
in the office environment, where a number
of staff members are responsible for the
environmental management of the office.
9.0 Behavioural
management changes
Green office programs are cultural change
programs attempting to promote more
sustainable behaviour within the office
environment. It is the goal of this Green Office
Resource Guide that Queensland Health staff
employ these environmental policies as part
of their natural daily work routine. In essence,
this guide promotes a shift in behavioural
management toward more environmentally
sustainable work, and potentially home,
practices.
4) Communication
Office environmental representatives
survey staff about switching off lights and
removing certain light globes
Office environmental representatives
discuss ideas with staff
Signage, e.g. colour-coded floor plans,
explaining switches and location; signs/
stickers next to light switch reminding
people to switch off; signs redesigned
every two (2) months to grab peoples
attention
Environmental audits made public and
discussed with staff
5) Incentives
Night audits conducted, if staff meet two of
three criteria (lights off, screen off, paper
recycling bin emptied) a small gift left on
their desk (perhaps a small chocolate)
6) Norms
2) Barriers
3) Benefits
Environmental benefits lower energy
consumption
Monetary benefits lower energy costs
Increase positive office culture and social
norms
location (postcode)
number of computers (for office tenants and
owner-occupiers)
energy and water use of the premises in the
past 12 months.
2 Stars HH
Exceptional performance!
Good performance!
Excellent performance!
1 Star H
Poor performance!
Your office is consuming a lot of unnecessary
energy. There are cost-effective changes
that can be implemented to improve energy
consumption, cut operating costs and reduce
greenhouse emissions.
3 Stars HHH
Very good performance!
Your office has very good systems and
management practices and reflects an
awareness of the financial and environmental
benefits of optimising energy use.
Very Good
od
o
G
Ex
ce
lle
n
Current market
best practice
performance
This building
is exceptional due to
integrated design, operation,
management and fuel choice.
onal
epti
Exc
Poor
Average building
performance
March 2009
The State of Queensland 2009
Copyright protects this publication. However the
Queensland Government has no objection to this material
being reproduced with acknowledgement, except for
commercial purposes. Permission to reproduce for
commercial purposes should be sought from
Carbon Management Unit
Health Services Purchasing and Logistics Branch
Queensland Health
GPO Box 48
BRISBANE QLD 4001
An electronic version of this document is available at
www.health.qld.gov.au/carbon_management