The City of Seattle has been recognized as a 2020 EPEAT Purchaser Award winner, which celebrates leaders in sustainable electronics procurement. The award comes from the Green Electronics Council (GEC), the nonprofit organization that manages the EPEAT ecolabel. EPEAT stands for Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool.
EPEAT allows the Seattle Information Technology Department (Seattle IT) to efficiently address the lifecycle impacts of the electronics we purchase, including computers, displays, printers, copiers, mobile phones, servers, and televisions.
The EPEAT Benefits Calculator helps organizations demonstrate the impact of their sustainable IT procurement decisions using familiar metrics like reduction in energy use, greenhouse gases and solid waste, as well as cost savings.
The total impact reductions and cost savings over the lifetime of 6,192 EPEAT-registered products purchased by the City in 2019 is estimated at $185,935 with the environmental impact reductions equivalent to taking 260 cars off the road for a year, the annual electricity consumption of 163 average U.S. households, or the weight of 41 refrigerators or 119 elephants.
The below infographic provided by GEC further illustrates the environmental and cost benefits associated with Seattle’s EPEAT-registered purchases.
“It is an honor to have received this recognition,” said Saad Bashir, Seattle’s Chief Technology Officer. “Seattle IT is committed to the continued procurement of sustainable electronics. Sustainable purchasing protects both our workers, reduces loads on our landfills, conserves energy, and supports a sustainable electronics supply chain.”
The City uses EPEAT in purchasing contracts to require that our vendors only provide electronics that meet strict sustainability criteria. These products are more energy efficient, less toxic, longer lasting, and easier to recycle than products that do not meet EPEAT criteria while addressing labor and human rights issues along the entire supply chain. Buying these sustainable products moves the City closer to achieving our goals of reducing carbon pollution, championing environmental equity, and growing sustainable communities.