Santa Clara University - Sustainability at SCU

Below you will find some invaluable resources for purchasers.

Problems Posed by E-Waste

Environmental and health impacts worldwide:
See the Computer TakeBack Campaign web site
Costs to universities:
See coverage in the Chronicle of Higher Education
and in Computer World
Campus support for cleaner computers:
See the www.toxicdude.com campaign web site, especially http://www.toxicdude.com/LatestNews/NewsCoverage.asp

California’s Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003 (SB 20

Responsible E-Waste Recyclers

Procurement Guidelines

Computer TakeBack Campaign/Healthcare Without Harm guidelines:
See the Computer TakeBack Campaign web site
Other guidelines and information:
See the California Integrated Waste Management web site
How to draft and implement guidelines in your organization:
See the Healthcare Without Harm materials under “Environmentally Preferable Purchasing” at http://www.hcwh.org/goinggreen/
Sample vendor questionnaire and disposal agreement:
See this Computerworld article

Environmental Seal/Certifications

TCO:
See this Swedish organization’s standards for emissions and use of recyclable material at http://www.tco.se/TCO_english-index.asp
Blue Angel:
See this German government organization’s standards for standards for ease of recycling at http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/epp/pubs/envlab/blueangel.pdf

Other Organizations Taking Action

Large institutions that are already incorporating environmental criteria into their procurement policies include Catholic Healthcare West, Kaiser Permanante, and the City and County of Denver, CO. They will soon be joined by the State of California.