Concerned about the environment these days? Making eco-friendly changes in your office saves money and saves resources. These common sense to not-so-common suggestions will lower the impact your office space on our planet.
Pay attention to the paper trail
Paper can be the largest waste product in an office environment. From printing reams of paper, to notebooks, to tiny Post-It notes – an office’s paper usage can be a big source for unnecessary waste. Wasted paper is the largest contributor, by percentage, to our landfills. It’s estimated that six reams of paper are equal to one tree. Over the course of a year, your office could be responsible for destroying a small grove of trees! Switching to 100% post-consumer recycled paper can help your office slow deforestation. At a very minimum, you should use 30% post-consumer recycled paper. Recycle whatever part of your paper supply that you can.
Get an efficient printer
There are so many options when it comes to energy efflicenet printers these days. Look for the “Energy Star” label when shopping around. Having one central printer that can handle larger print jobs is ultimately more efficient than using multiple individual printers.
When shopping around, you can also ompare the per-page print cost specifications to determine which printer model will allow you to use the lowest amount of toner cartridges — saving you money and reducing waste.
Lighting
Lighting is important to avoid eye strain, but your office environment doesn’t have to be 100% bright, 100% of the time. It’s estimated by the US Department of Energy that lighting accounts for 29% of office energy usage. You can reduce your electricity usage by using light timers in your office space, or making it a point to turn off the lights when you leave a room. Replace old style light bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps. CFL bulbs last up to 10 times longer and can be recycled.
Lighting is important to avoid eye strain, but your office environment doesn’t have to be 100% bright, 100% of the time. It’s estimated by the US Department of Energy that lighting accounts for 29% of office energy usage. You can reduce your electricity usage by using light timers in your office space, or making it a point to turn off the lights when you leave a room. Replace old style light bulbs with compact fluoresc
Control your computer’s energy usage
Next to lights, computers and office equipment are the biggest strain on your energy usage. Just one computer uses between 60 and 250 watts of energy per hour. When you have dozens of computers in an office, this can really add up. You can reduce your energy usage by ensuring that every computer in your office automatically goes to sleep after a few minutes of inactivity. Be sure that you turn off computers at the end of the day.
Consider a Virtual Office
If you’re in the process of deciding on office space and green issues matter to you, consider getting a virtual office. Virtual Offices, among other environmental benefits, eliminate daily commutes which equal to 2.2 tons of CO2 emissions per year. Best of all, you’ll save money by skipping the hassles of getting to and from work each day.
