More than the color of your favorite signal light—green is the way to go.
Everyone seems to be going green these days. Major companies from Wal-Mart to General Motors are implementing green business practices. In 2005 alone, more than $1.6 billion in venture capital went to companies that produce green technology, a 35 percent increase over 2004. There’s no doubt about it. With the high price of oil and worries over global warming, sustainable businesses are moving into the mainstream with momentum.
“Simply put, being green means your business is taking steps to reduce its environmental footprint in the world,” says Dana Armanino from the Marin Green Business Program. “That can be anything from water conservation to reducing your energy use to reusing your resources to recycling more.”
Many people believe that developing an environmentally sustainable business is the right thing to do. Green businesses use less of our natural resources, give off less pollution and waste and show customers that they have values beyond just making money. If everyone were more mindful about the natural resources they use, the thinking goes, it would make a huge difference in how much we impact the earth.
For most businesses, going green doesn’t have to mean major changes, either. For example, if every household in the United States changed five 100-watt light bulbs to five fluorescent bulbs, it would reduce the same amount of greenhouse gases as taking one million cars off the road, according to Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth.”
Beyond that, being a green business saves money. At its core, being sustainable means developing an efficient use of resources, which is key in any business. The principles are simple. By reducing energy use, the energy bill goes down. By reusing resources, you get twice the return on the original investment in the resource. Often, what’s good for Mother Earth is also good for the pocketbook.
“Being green directly benefits the business’ bottom line,” says Denise Hamler, director of the Co-Op America Business Network, a coalition of environmentally sustainable companies. “They can save large percentages in bills for everything from energy efficiency to cost containment to fuel usage. I see it all the time in companies.”
On top of the amount that can be saved through these practices, green business is also good marketing—especially in the North Bay, where many people are interested in the environment. Whether or not a business is sustainable may not be the first thing consumers look for when considering what to buy, but it is becoming more of a factor.
The government is starting to catch on as well. In California, several state and county programs are popping up to help businesses go green. These programs range from the certification programs proving businesses are green to rebates helping business pay for infrastructure changes.
Employers have a host of factors to consider when thinking about going green. Since every business is different, how to do it depends on individual needs and procedures.
Get certified
All three North Bay counties participate in the Bay Area Green Business Program (BAGBP), designed to help businesses go beyond basic compliance with the law and become environmentally responsible. The program, which is available in seven counties throughout the Bay Area, is a partnership of local governments, environmental agencies and the business community.
Each county has a checklist for businesses to follow to become more sustainable. Once a business asks to participate, a coordinator inspects its operations and makes a list of things for it to do before it can become certified. When the business completes the list, it’s recognized with a certification as an official green business. It’s also given promotional materials so it can market itself as a sustainable business to customers.
Marin County has, by far, the largest green business program in the North Bay with 150 participating companies including retail, manufacturing and professional offices. Sonoma County, on the other hand, has only six certified green businesses, all auto repair shops. Originally, the county viewed BAGBP as a chance to help auto shops become more environmentally responsible. However, it’s beginning to expand the program to other industries, according to coordinator Andrew Parsons.
In the mid-1990s, Napa County’s Green Business Program practically shut down after certifying only two auto repair shops. However, since Steve Lederer has taken over as director of environmental management, the program has started up again and is being expanded to include hospitality industries and contractors.
“I think there’s a lot of value in getting companies to voluntarily go beyond basic environmental compliance,” says Lederer. “There’s so much more that can be done than just meeting the regulations.”
One advantage of getting certified is that it protects companies from falling out of compliance with the law, something that is especially valuable for businesses that handle hazardous material, Lederer adds.
Certification is a protection for businesses where being out of compliance with environmental regulations can be expensive, damaging to its reputation and even mean being shut down. On the other hand, going above and beyond to become certified green can increase a business’ reputation. Companies known for caring about the world around them usually have good will from their customers.
Good will is one reason that the Napa Valley Vintners Association is beginning its own certification program, the Napa Green Winery Program.
This new endeavor is a complement to the Napa Green Program, which was launched in 2002 to keep grape growers from infringing on natural habitat and to help them comply with laws like the Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and the California Department of Fish and Game Code. The Napa Green Winery Program will make sure that the inside of the wineries—everything from the bottling plant to the tasting room—is also green.
The Vintners Association is developing an industry-specific checklist to help wineries become more sustainable. As with the Napa Green Business Program, those who complete the checklist will receive green certification. In fact, in the future, the new program may merge with the county program, according to Lederer.
Either way, the goal is for the wine industry to take on a leadership role when it comes to being green.
“We’re hoping once we start this program in the wine industry, it will spread to other industries,” says project manager Jeri Gill. “We’re hoping to demonstrate to our neighbors, as well as regulators and consumers, that we’re protecting environmental quality here in Napa.”
Marketing to the green consumer
Being green is thought of as good marketing. One of the perks of green certification is that it’s proof to customers that a business is environmentally responsible.
Experts debate how much consumers really think about the environment when it comes to making a purchase. A recent study by University of Leeds in England found that while consumers do take into account the environment and other ethical questions when debating whether to buy a product, it usually comes secondary to how much the item costs.
In addition, consumers may not apply ethical standards to everything they buy. They think about it when buying clothes or food, but “struggle to reconcile the competing issues of brand, energy efficiency and the desire to shop locally for more major items such as a dishwasher,” according to the study.
In the North Bay, however, consumers are more likely to shop green than people are in other areas. “There are definitely marketing benefits to the green certification here,” says Armanino. “In Marin and throughout the Bay, there’s encouragement toward going green. People do shop green here.”
And even if the environment isn’t the top thing on consumers’ minds, one thing is clear: It is becoming more important. Consumers are more interested in the conditions under which their goods are manufactured, especially when it comes to food and beverages.
For the Wine Green Business Program, the interest in how the wine is made extends to all practices, including how sustainable the winery’s business practices are, believes Gill.
“I think the wine consumers are clearly connected to how wine is made,” she says. “But in general, consumers are getting a little more savvy to how food is produced. They’re looking beyond where it’s grown to the people behind the labels and how it’s made. And as we live closer to where our food comes from, people are going to become more interested in sustainability as well.”
Saving some energy
Another way for a business to go green is to reduce the amount of energy it uses. Some changes are small, like using all fluorescent bulbs or turning off computer monitors when they aren’t being used. Others, like a tune-up to a refrigeration unit or a programmable thermostat that turns down at the end of the day, can make a difference in how well existing appliances work. Of course, some changes, such as replacing equipment with more energy-efficient alternatives, are more expensive. In many cases, PG&E offers free energy audits to help people and companies pin down their biggest energy expenditures.
Even though these changes usually mean long-term savings, they can also mean large upfront expenses for new equipment and supplies. The good news is that in some areas, financial assistance is available to help businesses with their switch over to energy efficiency. Most notably, Marin County has the Small Business Energy Alliance.
This little-known program subsidizes up to 75 percent of installation costs for new equipment. This, combined with the savings the employers make in their energy bill, can quickly mean a new influx of cash. So, in the case of a $10,000 project, the Small Business Energy Alliance would pay $7,500 of the bill, leaving the employer to pay the remaining $2,500.
“That $2,500 is recouped within a few months and then it’s money in their pocket,” says Ken Moore, program director for the Small Business Energy Alliance. “They see immediate repercussions in the bill. Monthly, they start saving $500 to $600. In fact, most lighting projects see simple payback in less than six months’ time.”
The Alliance is funded through a programming charge on everyone’s PG&E bill, which is supposed to fund programs that reduce energy use in California.
“With all the rolling blackouts and demand on the electrical infrastructure, one of the quickest ways to mitigate growth is through conservation,” says Moore. “It’s easier to change a light bulb than to build a new power plant.”
Water conservation
Like electricity, water conservation is a common way for businesses to go green. While most offices use far less water than electricity, conservation can still have an impact on both the environment and the bottom line.
To conserve water, employers first have to become familiar with how much water they use and then look for ways to cut back. This can mean everything from encouraging employees to use less water to planting drought-resistant plants to checking for water leaks. To do that, read the water meter before and after shutting it off and see if there is a change in the meter. Some municipal departments in the North Bay offer free water audits to help businesses with this.
There’s also a host of water-efficient technologies to consider: faucet aerators, low-flow showerheads, on-off valves on hoses, toilet tank displacement devices and low-flow flush toilets that use 1.6 gallons per flush rather than the 3.5 to 7 gallons that’s used by other toilets. In many parts of the North Bay, including all of Marin County and some cities in Sonoma and Napa, businesses can get rebates to install low-flow toilets for free.
In an agricultural area, there are plenty of opportunities for growers to save on water as well. Joseph Phelps Vineyard in St. Helena recycles winery wastewater for landscape and some vineyard irrigation. Other wineries just keep a watchful eye on where the water is going.
“I was talking to a gentleman at Trinchero Winery about employee awareness,” says Gill. “And he was saying how a lot of times an employee will want to look busy, so he’ll pick up a hose and start washing down the floor. Well, he doesn’t need to do that. That’s the kind of thing that can end up being costly in the long run.”
Other green ideas
For most businesses, there are a few other things to consider when becoming more sustainable:
Go paperless. As with other resources, going paperless means first becoming aware of how much paper is used. This means assessing the needs of the office, comparing that to what is bought and then looking for ways to save. Encourage employees to email and discourage them from printing things out. Look into double-sided printing, reusing scratch paper or buying recycled paper.
Conserve fuel. Wal-Mart recently pledged to reduce fuel use in its shipping fleet by half. By 2020, the company will eliminate 26 billion pounds of carbon dioxide from the air—and it will also save $52 million per year in fuel costs. Transportation, one of the biggest pollutants out there, is also expensive. Look into reducing business travel, using smaller and more efficient cars and exploring alternative ways to ship products.
Reuse resources. Offices can throw out things before they’re completely used, but an office with a mind toward recycling will be amazed at how many things can have a second or third life. Reusing resources does two things: it helps save money and it reduces the trash bill, according to Armanino.
“I’ve had companies reduce so much waste, they’ve downsized the container, which can make quite a difference,” she says.
Have a strategy
The options for going green range from the familiar, like installing solar panels on a roof, to the unusual and complex, like creating an industrial eco-park where one industry’s byproduct is another industry’s input. For some companies, it means switching out a few light bulbs and reducing office waste. For others, it means a huge overhaul of equipment. But no matter what the situation, to become more environmentally responsible, businesses must have a plan.
This is no easy thing when you consider all the factors involved. In many cases, saving on one resource can mean extending another. But when you’re doing it right, you see the difference right away, according to Hamler.
“We developed a strategy for the Co-op’s paper needs by buying recycled paper once a year in bulk,” says Hamler. “It was a double-win for us because it saved money and was more efficient since we only have to buy one time instead of throughout the year. And that’s what you have to do. Develop a strategy that meets your own needs and helps you be more efficient—but also reduces the size of your footprint on the planet.”
Santa Rosa Junior College’s Increased Energy Efficiency
By Susan Bagby Matthews
Cogeneration Plant—Originally installed in 1989, a retrofit and modernization was completed in April 2005. The plant generates $90,000 worth of electricity each year, and produces hot and chilled water for Tauzer Hall, Quinn Swim Center, Maggini Hall, Barnett Hall and Bailey Hall. The project qualified SRJC for a $168,000 rebate.
Lounibos Photovoltaic Project—After one year of operation, the project generated 80kW of electricity at peak output. SRJC recently approved the augmentation of a project to add 30kW more capacity. The original rebate was more than $300,000 and the new addition will qualify SRJC for another rebate.
Frank P. Doyle Library—With a 48 kilowatt photovoltaic array on its roof, the library will generate a significant amount of electricity and receive a PG&E rebate of $137,000.
Plover Hall Photovoltaic Project—Includes a 146 kilowatt array on the roof to generate electricity for campus use, qualifying for a rebate of up to $411,000.
Public Safety Training Center—Will provide a 213 kilowatt array mounted on carport shade structures in the south parking lot, qualifying for a rebate of up to $600,000.
Electric Vehicles—SRJC is replacing aging vehicles with electric and hybrid service vehicles.
Cooling Systems—The HVAC system at the Race Health Sciences Building uses a state-of-the-art cooling system. The building won regional and national awards for low energy consumption because of its indirect/direct evaporative cooling (IDEC), which will also be used in the remodeled Plover Hall and in the expansion of the Petaluma Campus in conjunction with an under-floor, low-volume air distribution system.
Ice Cool Systems—The new library uses an air conditioning system that makes ice at night when energy costs are lowest, then circulates water through the ice during the day to chill it before sending it through the building.
New Student Service Center—When the new center is built, it will include a heating and cooling system that uses deep wells to tap into groundwater, which will provide nearly free, unlimited access to a heating and cooling medium.
Reduce Chemical Use—SRJC is moving away from conventional treatment of water in open loop air conditioning systems to reduce chemical use and discharge into the environment, thereby reducing costs.
