Businesses across the North Bay are making their green practices official.
It’s almost a cliché, green business in Marin. The county that brought you hot tubs and peacock feathers and deftly incorporated chi and rolfing and transcendental meditation into everyday life, all while its residents pulled down enough long green to pay home prices that resemble the debt of a Third World country, Marin embraces green business? Imagine a place, where there are more farmers markets per capita than anywhere else in this fine country, falling in love with businesses that don’t just wear their environmental commitment on their sleeves. A spot where traffic jams in the Whole Foods parking lot have given rise to a new kind of social phenomena—parking space rage—set off by too many drivers trying to buy organic groceries vying for precious real estate in which to park their Prius.
Almost a cliché, like dog bites man. Film at 11.
Consider for a moment, however, just how far along the concept of green business is in Marin. In the whole of the Bay Area, there are a little more than 1,000 certified green businesses. In Marin, there are 245, a quarter of the total, while the other eight counties claim the remaining 75 percent.
Think about that 245 for a moment. The majority of businesses in Marin are of the small variety, with fewer than 10 employees. These are businesses that put a premium on resources, because they aren’t swimming in them. These businesses are, literally, running as fast as they can to compete in the marketplace, a marketplace that’s not cheap to operate in. Moreover, these businesses reside in a place that hasn’t traditionally embraced commerce, in spite of its appetite for material things.
So for a business in this area to make the commitment to lead a green life and become certified isn’t a small undertaking.
Marin’s Green Program
Want more proof? Take a look at the Marin County Green Business certification program, run by Dana Armanino, green business coordinator for the county. The program has become so popular that Armanino no longer markets it. Word of mouth has propelled the program, an offshoot of the Bay Area Green Business Program, to a place where businesses are graduating at the rate of 15 to 20 or more every four months.
I call Armanino to book some time to discuss the program. The conversation goes a little like this: “Are you sure you want to do another story?” she asks. Her voice sounds hurried, but she is polite. “You guys did a story on us last year.” I assure her that, indeed, we do want to do a story on green business and go into a spiel about how this story is different from that story.
Her reticence makes me think that she or the program is different than most bureaucratic endeavors, which practically beg the press for attention. “You know what would make a better story? The Sonoma County program. They’re just getting that program rolling,” she offers. I assure her that we’ll be talking to them for the story as well and shift in to my semi-begging mode. “Really, the magazine would like to take look at your program; it really would make a better piece with you guys in it.”
She remains unconvinced. “My schedule this week is really tight. I don’t really have any time later in the week.” She sounds busy, and I’m nothing if not understanding. “Well, if you don’t have time, you don’t have time. I get it.” I’ll figure out something without Marin.
She then has mercy. “I could do half an hour later today,” she says.
We sit in a generic conference room at the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Marin Civic Center. She apologizes for being quick with me on the phone, and I assure her that she wasn’t rude. “As a member of the press, you get used to much worse than that. I don’t even raise my voice till people start swearing,” I tell her.
The reality is, a story about Armanino’s work and the success of the program will only generate more work for her, the county has only designated a little more than 13 hours per week for Armanino to spend on green business and things are plenty busy without a magazine spreading the word further.
She explains that, when businesses inquire about green certification, they’re given materials that include a list of ways to reduce energy and water consumption along with ideas on how to reduce waste and pollution, use recycled materials and operate in a sustainable way. Businesses then move through the process at their own speed.
When they’re ready, businesses apply for certification through the county and go about meeting the standards while getting assistance meeting regulatory requirements such as waste water, air emissions, and health and safety. If there are issues, the regulatory agency must sign off before the application advances. In most cases, businesses simply go about fulfilling the checklist and schedule a visit from the county to verify. Should the business fail to pass, it can address the shortcoming and reapply in a month’s time.
It’s the bottom line
In Marin, there are more than 20 different industries that have received certifications. “I think businesses understand that, not only is this the right thing to do, but being green saves money—which is something all businesses understand,” says Armanino.
Just ask Fireman’s Fund, the insurance giant that calls Novato home. The company, whose corporate parent is Germany’s Allianz SE, spent $200,000 to replace its lighting system with a greener one. But Dean Selna, national facilities director for the company, reports the new lights save the company $86,000 a year. In less than three years, the new system will pay for itself. “That’s a pretty good return on investment,” he says.
Fireman’s Fund is a Marin-certified green business, in part because Allianz issued a directive to all the companies it owns: “We have to reduce our green house emissions by 20 percent by 2012,” says Selna.
Allianz is serious about the green thing, and Fireman’s Fund is even offering green insurance products. According to Steve Bushnell, product director for commercial business, the company is the first to sell such policies. One product offers a building insurance discount and broadened coverage for certified green buildings; should the building suffer a loss, Fireman’s fund fully covers areas like vegetative roofs and alternative energy systems. The company also has a product that pays to have a building upgraded to green status after a loss (such as a fire). And the insurer is currently working on coverages for private homes that incorporate green practices and systems as well as one for biodiesel cars.
Businesses that have gone green not only save money (thanks to their newer, more efficient practices), but also make money from their environmental bent. “[Businesses] tell us all the time that customers make choices based on the fact a business is green,” says Armanino. “Part of our program is that certified businesses are listed by category on the website, and they also receive a window sticker, so people know they’re green.”
Armanino tells of a Marin-based business consultant who was recently contacted by the city of San Francisco. “The city had a new request for proposal it was issuing and had given a preference for businesses that had been certified green. This business got a call—out of the blue—about the RFP, because the city wasn’t receiving enough applications from green businesses. So not only did the business get the call because they’re green, they have a better chance of winning the bid.”
The buzz on green vibrators
Armanino says that, while lots of businesses know going green can save them money in the long run, there are others doing it because they think it’s the right thing to do. One would be green-certified Pleasures of the Heart, a retailer of sensual products located on Fourth Street in San Rafael. Owner Jennifer Islas takes the green concept very seriously. She contacted vendors requesting they not send garments on plastic hangers or in plastic bags. When she does get a plastic bag, she uses it for garbage. She’s found another merchant who’ll take and reuse the packing peanuts and cardboard cartons she receives. As a result, Pleasures of the Heart has gone from two large trash bins per week down to half a small bin, cutting back on what it costs to have their refuse hauled away.
But Islas’ dedication to running a green business goes beyond cardboard recycling. She found vendors who make lingerie from soy, modal (beechwood cellulose), bamboo and organic cotton. She carries 18 different vibrators that plug into the wall for recharging, along with toys made of steel, onyx, marble, granite, glass, and plastics that are pthalate-free (pthalates contribute to greenhouse gases).
It’s gotten to a point where new vendors are courting Islas on the basis of being green. “The adult industry isn’t that green yet, but new companies are coming in. We’ve even had vendors talk to us about what they want to do, because we’re making being green a priority,” she says.
It’s not enough to say Islas and her business take being green seriously. She carries Armanino’s card around with her, so she can refer non-green businesses to the program. Islas sits on the board of the downtown Business Improvement District, where she’s doing all she can to spread the word. She’s also a volunteer of both the Women’s Committee as well as the Education Committee of the San Rafael Chamber, which has sponsored events regarding green business. The Women’s Committee event drew 80 attendees, about three times the normal amount. “There’s a lot of interest out there. People want to know what they can do and how it all works,” says Islas.
For some businesses, going green is less about technology and more about training. For John Sarran at Bubba’s Diner in San Anselmo, that meant teaching his staff that energy was one of the things it needed to cut back on. “The nature of the business is that it isn’t just a business; it’s a lifestyle,” he says. “We’re open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, so the lights and the freezer are on all the time. But we need to shut other things down when we can. So when it’s slower, we close down half the grill. The waffle maker, other things, when they aren’t in use they go off.”
Sarran also installed a large evaporative cooler that reduces heating and air conditioning costs by tempering the outside air as it enters the building.
Bubba’s is well known for its fare, and it goes organic whenever possible. Clover organic dairy products, Niman Ranch beef, Rocky Chicken and Petaluma Farm eggs are just some of the suppliers Sarran uses. “We try to use local sources, so we’re doing what we can to cut down on transportation of products.”
Sarran has persuaded his produce suppliers not to use waxed boxes, which can’t be recycled. “It’s a small thing, but you have to get creative,” he says. “All our used cooking oil is recycled and used to produce biodiesel. We installed electronic eyes in some of our spaces, where we need light but not all the time, so when the area isn’t occupied, the lights go off automatically.”
Energy is a huge area where green businesses are finding they can save money. Fireman’s Fund is currently looking at how it can install solar power to take care of its Novato campus. “We’re doing the research right now, looking at different systems and how they work,” says Selna. “We’d like to get to a point where we’re producing as much sustainable energy as possible to reduce our greenhouse gas emission footprint and utility expense. We want to be able to take care of all the energy we need and get to a point where we’re selling it back to PG&E.”
What about the Wine Country?
Sonoma County is restructuring its green business to focus beyond the car repair shops, printers and wineries it initially targeted. The roster of businesses that participated in the first program is impressive, but officials are now operating a program that more closely mirrors Marin and the rest of the Bay Area.
The new program, a cooperative effort between the Business Environmental Alliance and the county, is designed to aid companies looking to become more environmentally savvy and qualify for certification.
Given that agriculture (via the wine industry) is Sonoma Valley’s dominant business type, it shouldn’t be surprising that many wineries are already exploring ways to take care of the soil and environment that make it possible for them to turn a profit.
So far, much of the interest in the reinvigorated Sonoma program is via word of mouth, because the county has been focusing on fine tuning the pilot phase before rolling it out to a wider audience. Nevertheless, under Green Business Coordinator Laura Kim, the program has received about 150 inquiries from firms wanting to find out more about green business certification.
In Napa, Director of Environmental Management Steve Lederer has something in common with both Sonoma and Marin counties, in that none of the counties have much in the way of resources to throw at the programs, despite demonstrable interest from a number of industries. “Back in the 1990s when the Association of Bay Area Governments first started developing the green business program, we helped launch that effort and certified half a dozen businesses,” Lederer says. “But the funding dried up, and we had to focus on other programs. We weren’t able to pick the ball up until July 2006.”
Lederer was the only county employee working on the program, but it’s now partnered with the Napa County Transportation and Planning Agency to hire another half-time person.
As in Sonoma, vintners in Napa have led the way with a volunteer effort to go green. “We’ve reached out to some businesses and wineries, and the Napa Valley Vintners’ green winery program is quite similar to a lot of what we’re trying to do.”
Lederer says his program is gaining ground via word of mouth and a growing environmental awareness. “I guess you could call it the ‘Inconvenient Truth’ wave,” he says, alluding to the best selling book about global warming by former vice president Al Gore, which was also turned into a successful movie. “There’s a sea change going on out there. Businesses are realizing that things are changing whether they like it or not, and there’s a market imperative for change.”
Armanino agrees. “More and more, I think companies are understanding that things are changing, and the way to be smart is to stay ahead of the curve. It would be nice to think that businesses are making changes because they respect the environment—and there are some who do,” she says. “But they also understand that they can save money and make more by going green.”
