PROCUREMENT
THE ECODESIGN DIRECTIVE: PROMOTING GREEN PURCHA
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s governments, consumers and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) increasingly demand that companies take responsibility
for the environmental and social consequences of production and products, more and more organisations are taking a closer look at their supply chains. Many have implemented programs in order both to demonstrate their continuing compliance to new and current EU regulations, and to monitor and report on other environmental targets. The Ecodesign Directive requires organisations to incorporate considerations about their products’ energy use at the design stage. It means retailers and distributors have had to work closely with manufacturers on energy-related issues in order to comply. The result has been increased attention to environmental issues at earlier stages of development and has prompted many organisations to take up green purchasing strategies which include both environmental compliance and “beyond compliance” issues.
THE ECODESIGN DIRECTIVE: BACKGROUND AND DEVELOPMENT The Ecodesign Directive (2009/125/ EC) stems from a previous framework directive on the eco-design and information requirements of energy-using products. In 2009 this directive was re-cast to widen its scope, from “energy- using” to “energy-related” products. In summary, an energy-using product is a product which, once placed on the market and/or put into service, is dependent on energy input (i.e. electricity, fossil fuels or renewable energy sources) to work as intended, whereas energy-related products have “an impact on energy consumption during use”.
The broadening of this directive has resulted in the inclusion of a wide range of products, and has compelled the European Commission to use a series of Implementing Measures (IMs) to regulate individual product categories. This adds another layer of complexity within the framework directive as each individual IM has its own timeline, scope, eco-design and information requirements. To date there are over 30 IMs in various stages of completion with another working plan introduced for 2012-2014. In order to ensure compliance,
34 PUBLIC SECTOR SUSTAINABILITY • VOLUME 3 ISSUE 5
organisations should be well aware of all the upcoming and current energy using IMs and all the upcoming and current energy related IMs so that they can establish which measures will affect their products portfolio. The Ecodesign Directive applies to all products on the market in the EU, whether manufactured there or imported. Furthermore, retailers should ensure the products they sell are compliant by communicating and working closely with suppliers from an early stage of product development.
The next step is to understand the current and future timelines and requirements. An organisation needs to cooperate closely with its suppliers to understand what their products can and cannot achieve and what changes need to be made in future. Perhaps additions are required, or designs need to be reworked, all of which must be completed according to the relevant IM timeline. Please see Figure 1 for an overview of current and future IMs.
It would be prudent for companies to discuss other environmental factors and issues as well during communications with suppliers. For example, organisations can discuss and then implement any number of green purchasing criteria with suppliers taking Ecodesign as the minimum requirement. These criteria could be applied to new or existing products and either apply to the supplier as a whole or just to individual products.
The Ecodesign Directive is a broad, far-reaching piece of EU legislation that
will increasingly influence organisations’ thinking and planning as more IMs are released and proposed. As such, it behooves organisations to be proactive and start early to look at how future IMs may impact their business. Ecodesign can form the basis of a supplier mandate for purchasing and a green purchasing strategy to ensure that all products continue to be compliant. An added advantage to this approach is that it improves an organisation’s ability to quickly provide environmental footprint information for products when requested.
GREEN PURCHASING STRATEGIES Green purchasing (GP) can help meet the demands laid out in legislations such as the Ecodesign Directive and can help reduce the risk of brand/reputational damage from non-conforming suppliers. It can also help businesses achieve a competitive advantage using marketing or promotional activities that highlight features that go beyond standard legal requirements.
Approaches to GP have taken various forms with organizations developing their own internal standards and performance tools to assess their supply chain, as well as public bodies such as the European Union and the UK government providing guidance and policy on their own public procurement.
The overall aim of any green purchasing strategy is to improve the supply chain from an ecological point of view. This can be achieved using any of
Figure 1 – Status of Implementing Measures under the Ecodesign Directive
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