Whether you work in a “green” industry or not, having an environmentally-friendly office is more important than ever. Al Gore’s documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, has brought the reality of climate change to the majority of people, exposing this pertinent issue to millions. With each item ordered and dollar spent, you can help to make a difference on a daily basis, thanks to the burgeoning eco-friendly office supply market. Basic needs; such as paper, ink cartridges, and break room supplies; were some of the first to get a green makeover. In recent years, a full variety of furniture has been added to the environmentally friendly office stock available.

The Green Paper Chase

One of the first and easiest ways to add a touch of green to your office is in the paper you buy and the amount of paper you use. The widely-available printer/copier paper used by many businesses has only 30 percent post-consumer recycled content; this leaves 70 percent still coming from freshly-cut forests. Using 100 percent post-consumer or tree-free papers is one of the best ways to begin the transition of greening your business.

You should have little in the way of trouble in finding these arbor-friendly items. Domtar, New Leaf Paper, Mohawk, Living Tree, Green Field Paper Company, and Wausau are just some of the many brands that make recycled or tree-free paper for printers and copiers.

“All businesses should strive to operate in a more sustainable manner, including taking a look at the products they use,” says Guy Martin, director of legal and environmental affairs at Domtar. “Environmental consciousness has increased significantly, thanks to the climate change debate. Markets for ‘green’ products have therefore opened up significantly.”

Domtar’s line of EarthChoice papers, all of which are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), underscore Martin’s comments. Though the new papers are green thanks to their certification, only one of them is actually made from 100 percent post-consumer fibers: Sandpiper, which is available in 11 different colors.

New Leaf is one of the most widely-known and available makers of planet-friendly papers used for everything from magazines and books to everyday printing, copying, and reports. Along with their variety, nearly half of their entire product line is 100 percent post-consumer. Papers that aren’t virgin materials are FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified (see sidebar).

New Leaf’s Website touts their dedication to the environment on every page, along with mentioning that they lead the industry in development of eco-conscious office papers. “We make paper with the highest percentages possible of recycled and sustainably harvested fibers, processed without the use of chlorine or chlorine derivatives. Bleaching without chlorine or chlorine compounds results in a much less polluting paper making process.”

In terms of availability, Mohawk ranks right up there with New Leaf. Though a bit weightier than most 100 percent post consumer papers, the Mohawk Options paper is the best choice.

In 2003, Mohawk became one the first large-scale production facilities in the United States to use non-polluting wind-generated electricity to manufacture five lines of printing, writing, and copy paper. Its Mohawk Options, Color Copy, Strathmore Writing and Script, Beckett Expression and Mohawk Via are all manufactured with wind-generated electricity and certified by Green-e, an independent certification and verification program for renewable energy products.

The availability of alternative fiber papers has grown tremendously in recent years. Living Tree produces two papers, both of which are made from recycled waste and hemp/flax. Their Website www.livingtree.com provides a matrix to help choose which is best for your project. Green Field Paper has two options: one with hemp and another made entirely from recycled blue jeans. Reams of Hemp Heritage letterhead-size paper are available in three different thicknesses, #24 being the best for ink jet and laser printer use. These sheets are made in the USA by pulping 25 percent Canadian-grown hemp fiber blended with 75 percent post consumer waste, meaning no new trees are cut down to produce this product. Great for business letterheads or cards and daily use, reams of recycled denim paper are a viable option. Also available are matching envelopes.

Also on the ‘green’ paper team is Wausau Paper. Nearly two thirds of its paper grades contain at least 30 percent recycled post-consumer fiber. More than 1,000 of its products have earned independent Green Seal certification for environmental responsibility. In addition, Wausau has focused a lot of its energies of late on minimizing its environmental impact throughout the manufacturing process while conserving water and energy.

Similarly, International Paper with its Hammermill brands touts its commitment to the environment and in preserving and conserving natural resources. It’s Great White MultiUse 20 Paper for day-to-day interoffice documents meets the Executive Order for recycled content and contains 30 percent post-consumer fiber. Its Hammermill Fore MP and Pastels also contain 30 percent post-consumer fiber.

Green Furniture

The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology reports allergies affect as many as 40 to 50 million people in the United States. These allergies have resulted in $3.48 billion in lost productivity from men and women combined, as found by the {American Journal of Managed Care}. Office furniture is a common cause of such allergic frustrations, spawning a number of health-focused and planet-friendly options.

A member of the United States Green Building Council (the nation’s foremost coalition of leaders from across the building industry, working to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work in), Washington state-based Ecowork has developed functional office components which can be mixed and matched in countless ways, making it easy to customize for any work space. Curved lines and a variety of colors lend to the organic and natural form of their collection. Ninety-five percent of the materials used to make these office pieces are from recycled, sustainable, and rapidly renewing materials. Ecowork’s collection is designed for quick, few-tool assembly, along with having built-in wire management features.

Recently winning Best Architectural Product of the Year in 2006 from {Interior Design}magazine and receiving the 2006 Excellence in Partnership Green Contractor Award from the U.S. Coalition of Government Procurement and the U.S. General Services Administration, Dirtt Environmental Solutions helps create sustainable, successful workplaces. A variety of walls, power, and floor solutions make up their business. Local manufacturing, sustainable materials, and a staunch promoter of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification; Dirtt walls in particular allow for easy customizing, no matter the changes that go on with your work force and need for space.

LEED-certified Springbrain offers easily customizable office furniture that has been designed to “humanize the work space.” Walls, desks, filing cabinets, benches, and interlocking conference tables comprise their collection. To make the process easier, a company engineer will help guide you through the process of designing the office set-up that is right for you and your business. Springbrain runs their own production facility, so orders are custom-made in a very timely fashion, as well as very straightforward to assemble on-site.

Three of the biggest office furniture makers–Knoll, Herman Miller, and Steelcase–have been integrating sustainable practices for some time now. Each company has detailed policies to help manage the eco-impact of their designs, from start to finish. Herman Miller has a very ambitious program in the works called “Perfect Vision.” This broad initiative establishes specific targets to be reached by 2020, including zero landfill, zero hazardous waste generation, and zero air and water emissions from manufacturing, company buildings constructed to a minimum LEED Silver certification as well as the use of 100 percent green energy to meet their power needs. “Herman Miller has been an advocate for the environment since 1953, when our founder, DJ DePree, announced that we would be a good steward of the environment. The growth of “green” office design and furniture reflects the increase of education and awareness about the environment. From our Perfect Vision program, and others like it, to CEU courses about sustainable design, we’re learning more everyday about how we can all be better environmental stewards,” says Susan Koole of Herman Miller Corporate Communications.

An often overlooked route for office furniture is remanufactured or refurbished items. U.S. Green Building Council member Open Plan Systems assists businesses of all types, from small local offices to Fortune 500 clients, in saving money while saving the environment. Purchased from brokers and dealers around the country, the workstations are stripped of their hardware, cleaned, and reassembled. Should you need a different color or style, they can help you with that too. Open Plan offers thousands of laminates and fabrics to help customize each workstation. Along with offering basic office furniture, OPS also markets chairs, desk accessories, and task lighting. Though environmentally helpful in terms of recycling, refurbished workstations still retain the dangerous chemicals that were used to manufacture them (something to keep in mind when choosing a manufacturer).

Inside Your Supply Closet

Akin to paper use, all of the basic supplies in your office can be planet-friendly is one way or another. Smead has been providing filing and organizational products to companies for more than 100 years. An advocate for recycling, Smead uses post-consumer recycled material in all of their products. The items are also shipped in cartons which contain 75 percent recycled material. “Sales of 100% recycled products grew nearly 25% per year in 2005 and 2006, and our customers continue to ask us to use 100% recycled materials in more of our paper products. When office workers create demand for recycled products, they help make recycling programs successful. At Smead, that means we can provide office workers with products made with the recycled materials they want at prices they like,” says Jacquie Hart, New Product Development Manager at Smead. Using these post-consumer materials helps extend the life of our forests, save energy, water, and landfill space.

Printer ink is another great way to cut back on your planetary mark, as well as save money. For smaller inkjet printers, Eco-Inkjets.com sells high-quality remanufactured inkjet cartridges for Canon, Compaq, HP, and Lexmark printers. CarrotInk.com offers a much larger selection of refurbished cartridges (not just inkjets), as well as a wider variety of brands. They also offer a supportive recycling program and discounts on orders over $250. Creative offices can get in on the eco-act as well by using ForestChoice Carpenter and Colored Pencils, which are made from FSC-certified cedar wood (they sell classic #2 pencils as well). As technology continues to expand its grip on our workplaces, storing and transporting files can be an issue. GreenDisk sells recycled, professional grade CD-RW, CD/DVD, and formatted diskettes. Aside from this, GreenDisk also offers collection boxes for recycling tech items, and computer recycling services.

One-stop shopping for office supplies, similar to Staples and Office Max stores, are available for environmentally responsible items as well. Green Earth Office Supply has all the basics you can think of and more. For larger and more upscale items, visit The Green Office. Along with your everyday items, furniture, janitorial, and break room supplies are available. To see your impact, each item is ranked according to their Green Screen Key, making it that much easier to balance sustainability, quality, and cost.

Just as markets shift and fluctuate, we too must acknowledge how our daily actions affect the planet and its well being. Helping your office go green is a wonderful morale booster and a pretty sweet money saver at the same time.

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