These provide detailed information on individual products or services. Refer to these resources to assist in identifying environmental impacts associated with a purchase and planning how to address and minimise those impacts through the procurement process and specifications.
The EU GPP toolkit provides information and criteria on these categories: ICT products, paper, cleaning products and services, food and catering services, office furniture, mobile phones, transport/fleet, electricity, textiles, landscaping/gardening products, buildings and construction, construction materials, road construction and traffic signs, and street lighting and traffic signals.
Summarised information about popular environmentally preferable products and services. Category guides including building & construction, carpets, cleaning, electronics, fleets, food services, landscaping, meetings & conferences, office supplies, and paper.
Purchasing guides developed by the US-based Responsible Purchasing Network (RPN) including ICT products, paper, toner cartridges, cleaning products and services, food and catering services, bottled water, electronics, transport/fleet, tyres and wheel weights, carbon offsets, electricity, indoor lighting, and paint. Some of the guides require payment to access.
Category guides developed by the APCC including business machines, ICT products, print services, paper, cleaning products and services, office furniture.
Sustainable procurement guidelines including ICT, vehicles, cleaning, furniture, stationery, freight, cafeterias, and batteries.
An ICLEI initiative on implementing sustainable procurement. Category guides including buses, cleaning and maintenance, green electricity, food and catering, IT equipment, and building construction/renovation.
GECA develops standards for best practice for 40 product and service categories.
A useful guide of how organisations can reduce paper consumption in their offices.
A practical guide to improving environmental management practices, reducing environmental impacts of operations, as well as fostering greater efficiencies and operational cost savings, produced by the Australian National Audit Office.
Rates new Australian vehicles based on greenhouse and air pollution emissions, using data provided from manufacturers in testing vehicles to meet Australian standards.
An online guide to low emission vehicles, defined as those vehicles in the top 25% for greenhouse emissions in their class. Set up by the Low Emission Vehicle (LEV) Automotive Partnership, involving RACV, EPA Victoria and Future Climate.
A guide to purchasing recycled content office paper. Includes information on the specifications of all brands of recycled paper available as of 2009.
US based tool to help compare different papers, choose the most suitable one and measure its environmental benefits.
A checklist that suggests environmental criteria when purchasing products that can be made from recycled materials.
Provides brief information about the benefits of buying recycled and how to develop a Buying Recycled Policy within an organisation.
Planning a sustainable event including reducing waste. WRAP is a UK government organisation that encourages recycling and use of recycled materials.