Sustainable Purchasing Guide
Small Appliances
Small
Appliances
Introduction
This section provides information on
currently available small appliance
options that can help to move the
University of Saskatchewan toward its
sustainability goals. Living within the
boundaries of our sustainability objectives
requires us to apply two main strategies:
Dematerialization requires that
we reduce the amount of materials
as much as possible; and that we
continually move toward the use
of 100% recycled content.
Substitution requires that we find
less harmful materials to replace
those that currently damage and
are not recyclable.
Sustainable purchasing is about
including social, environmental, financial
and performance factors in a systematic
way. It involves thinking about the reasons
for using the product (the service) and
assessing how these services could be
best met. If a product is needed, sustainable purchasing involves considering how
products are made, what they are made
of, where they come from and how they
will be used and disposed.
Finally, remember that this is an evolving
document – it will change with new
information as our understanding of
sustainability impacts and potential
solutions improves.
Purchasing Services
Tel:
Email:
(306) 966-6704
purchasing.services@usask.ca
Office of Sustainability
Tel:
Email:
(306) 966-1236
fmdsustainability@usask.ca
Wherever possible CHOOSE products that employ a combination of characteristics listed in the
left hand column, and AVOID products that demonstrate characteristic in the right-hand column.
CHOOSE
AVOID
• Durable appliances
• Appliances with low phantom
power loss
• Devices to reduce phantom
power loss
• Recycled and recyclable content
• Appliances with a large amount
of plastic components
• Phantom power loss
Option: Choose durability to reduce appliance waste
Strategy: Substitution – Durability (SO 1, 3)
Using appliances for as long as possible conserves the energy and raw materials required
in manufacturing new products, moving us towards SO2. Waste is also reduced reducing
the harmful effects of their final disposal in the environment.
Check Consumer Reports to assess the average life-spans of comparable appliances
and to determine if they can be easily and economically serviced and maintained. Look
to increase energy efficiency of the small appliance by minimizing excess “frills” such as
soft touch-pads and clocks that consume unnecessary energy. Regular maintenance
and cleaning will prolong the life of your appliances, such as regularly removing bread
crumbs in toasters, ensuring cords and plugs are intact and removing dust regularly from
all systems of air exchange.
Option: Avoid and reduce phantom power consumption
Strategy: Substitution – Energy Efficiency (SO 1)
The term “phantom power” or “leaking power” describes electrical power consumed by
household gadgets and home electronics when they left are plugged into a wall outlet
while the product is not in use.
According to The U.S. Department of Energy, 75% of power used by small appliances is
consumed while the appliance is not even turned on. There are a few simple methods of
determining if your appliance is leaking energy:
• It gets power from a power supply converter • It has a remote control
• It has a soft touch keypad
• It has a digital clock
• It charges the battery of a portable device
• It is warm to touch
• It doesn’t have an “off” switch
Learn how much phantom power a piece of equipment uses before purchasing. In the
Resources section below there is a link to the Federal Energy Management Program’s
(FEMP) standby power data search utility, which provides information for different
appliances. Phantom power losses can be further avoid by establishing mechanisms
whereby power is regularly cut to the appliance by unplugging it or plugging it into a
power strip with a switch. Some power strips are available with special feature such as
on/off timers or special plugs within the power bar that won’t cut the power to certain
appliances that need to be left on. Aggressively combating phantom power can
result in a 7-10% decrease in energy consumption each month.
Sustainable Purchasing Guide
Option: Choose recycled and recyclable content
• Residual materials (“shredder fluff”containing plastics, foam,
rubber and so on) are sent to landfill.
Strategy: Substitution – Energy Efficiency (SO 1)
Choose products that are manufactured using recycled content.
If this is not possible, choose products containing materials that
have high end-of-life value with more metal and less plastic parts.
These are more easily recycled and provide a value incentive for
the producer to reclaim used products and incorporate recycling
in its manufacturing process.
An appliance generally follows these steps when it is recycled:
• Toxic and hazardous substances (including CFCs and PCBs)
are removed and reclaimed or disposed
• Appliances are shredded;
• Magnets capture the steel, which is collected and sold to
steel mills;
• Other metals are separated using eddy currents. These
metals are also re-sold for reprocessing
The shredding process is a highly efficient process resulting in
almost 100% recovery of metals, including aluminum, copper,
brass, zinc and steel. Of these metals, aluminum, copper and brass
are by far the most valuable, with steel having the least value.
Integral to the effectiveness of this option is the need to secure
a mechanism whereby the products can actually be recycled,
whether through the manufacturer or through local programs.
Option: Choose products that are
shipped sustainably
Please refer to the Sustainable Transportation Guide.
Arriving
at the currently preferred options
1. Identify the service
4. Identify sustainability impacts
Small appliances provide efficiencies in daily activities.
i.
2. Assess the need
The University of Saskatchewan requires small appliances in
residences, offices, labs and other facilities.
3. Identify the contents
The most common material found in most small appliances (by
weight) is steel, which is easily recycled. The plastics content of
appliances is increasing and therefore more plastics are entering
the waste stream as a result of appliance disposal.
Many appliances also contain small amounts of aluminum and
copper. There are often some glass components but the glass is
usually treated so it is resistant to heat. This is done by mixing
some form of a heavy metal with the glass which reduces its
recyclability. Some lead, PCBs and other potentially harmful
materials are usually found in trace amounts as well.
…systematically increasing concentrations of substances
from the earth’s crust?
• Small appliances use electricity to operate. If the electricity
used to operate the device and equipment is derived from
the combustion of fossil fuels, it leads to an increase in
concentration of substances from the earth’s crust in nature
(CO2, CO and SOx). Increasing concentrations of these
substances in nature can contribute to a number of negative
outcomes such as climate change and acid rain as well as
negative human health impacts. In Saskatchewan, most
electrical energy is generated from the combustion of coal,
a fossil fuel.
• The petroleum or natural gas used as feedstock for most
plastics is extracted from the earth’s crust at a rate much
greater than it is re-deposited back into the earth’s crust.
• Fossil fuels are also combusted to provide energy during
the extraction of raw materials, transportation and the
production of large appliances.
continued on page 3 …
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ii. …systematically increasing concentrations of substances
produced by society?
• If the plastic used in small appliances is not recyclable, it
usually ends up in landfills or incinerators. The plastic
persists in the environment after it is used and discarded,
contributing to an increase in concentration of complex
human-made substances in nature. While it is true that over
time and under the right conditions plastics will oxidize,
fragment and disintegrate – with continued strong growth
in the use and disposal of plastics, the timeline is too long
to prevent their accumulation in nature.
• The combustion of fossil fuels (see above) produces a
number of chemical compounds (e.g. nitrogen oxides) that
build up in the atmosphere.
6. Identify and prioritize alternatives
To identify the best options, review the Current Options on
page one and choose the most appropriate alternative by using the following three criteria for assessment:
a)Does the product or service move us in the right direction
with regards to our four Sustainability Objectives?
b)Does the product or service create a flexible platform for
the next step toward sustainability?
c)Is the decision financially viable?
iii. …systematically degrading nature by physical means?
• The extraction of fossil fuels and virgin metals/minerals may
systematically degrade nature, particularly where mining
disturbs land that is not reclaimed and restored.
iv. …systematically undermining people’s ability to meet their
basic human needs?
• A number of the compounds produced by the combustion
of fossil fuels (e.g. nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulfur
oxides, particulate matter) have a negative effect on
human health.
• Millions of small appliances are sent to the landfills each year
displacing humans, ecosystems and natural resources.
5. Envision sustainable small appliances
In principle, sustainable small appliances would feature:
• no components that are derived from the earth’s crust (e.g.
petrochemicals and metals), unless those ingredients are
100% captured and reused.
• no components that are persistent in nature (eg. plastic),
unless those substances are 100% captured and reused.
• a production process that:
- does not contribute to the increased concentrations of
substances from the earth’s crust or the buildup of
persistent compounds in nature,
- uses only sustainable renewable energy or energy
produced in a carbon-neutral manner;
- does not rely on practices that systematically physically
degrade land and ecosystems; and
- does not rely on practices that undermine people’s
capacity to meet their basic needs.
Resources
and Additional Information
1. EcoOffice Energy Saving Appliance.
www.ecooffice.com.sg/templates/madeyourweb/pdf/
ecooffice01_proc_guide.pdf
2. Rutgers Purchasing Guide.
www,purchasing.rutgers.edu/green/images/
Rutgers%20Green%20Purchasing%20Policy.pdf
3. Reducing Phantom Power.
www.ehow.com/
how_4781905_reduce-phantom-power.html
4. Energy Saving for Home Appliances.
www.energysavers.gov/your_home/appliances/index.
cfm/mytopic=10060
This guide was made possible through the generosity of the
Whistler 2012 project, which shared its template and much of
its research.
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