<Name of Organization> <date>
ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PURCHASING POLICY – Janitorial Cleaning
We are committed to environmental excellence and pollution prevention through continual improvement and meeting
or exceeding all environmental regulatory requirements. This Policy is adopted as a requirement of Bay Area Green
Business certification and to conserve natural resources, minimize environmental impacts, reduce hazards to workers
and our community and reduce materials to the landfill. We are committed to protecting the environment, the health
and safety of our employees, customers, and the community in which we conduct our business. The goal of this policy is
to ensure that the cleaning services we provide, purchase or contract for adhere to our commitment to lessen the
environmental impact of our home and office cleaning operations.
This policy is designed to address the major areas in which we have an environmental impact, specifically:
1. Offsite Operations (clients’ homes/offices/etc.)
2. Office Maintenance, Management and Purchasing Practices
We will strive, where feasible, to purchase environmentally preferable products and services to meet our office and
operational needs. We will also favor suppliers who provide environmentally preferable products. By sending a clear
signal to producers and suppliers about this commitment, we hope to support wider adoption of environmentally
preferable products and practices.
1. Offsite Operations – Working with Clients
Offsite Operations includes cleaning services at homes, offices, and other facilities and shall:
 use materials that are the least hazardous to the environment, customers, and public health
 use energy efficient and water conserving cleaning practices
 reduce pollution and waste
 Screening of cleaning chemicals for toxicity. Use GreenSeal, Design for the Environment, Ecologo or SF
Approved (www.sfapproved.org) or highly rated GoodGuide (www.goodguide.com) products
 Reduction of water use during cleaning
 Ensuring that materials that can be recycled or comosted are placed in correct bins or taken offsite to
appropriate locations
 Use of cloth in place of paper, when feasible
2. Office, Management and Purchasing Practices
Wherever possible, purchasing decisions will favor products and services that:
 reduce waste and pollution
 contain the highest available percentage of post-consumer recycled content
 minimize transportation impacts (local sources, more concentrated products)
 are reusable and/or durable
Examples include:
 Office supplies and packaging (paper, toner cartridges, packaging, etc.)
 Office energy efficiency (lighting, computers/monitors/printers/etc.)
 Office cleaning services and supplies
Employees shall be informed of the company’s environmental policy and will be provided with resources and support
that reduce waste and pollution and conserve water and energy
Examples include:
 Providing materials, tools and cleaning agents that adhere to EPP
 Training employees on the benefits of using less-toxic cleaning products
 Training employees on identifying materials that can be recycled or composted rather than sent to the
landfill
 Training employees on proper practices when using water to clean outdoors