You're green, aren't you?

Green used to be a once-a-year phenomenon pushed by high-spirited environmentalists who sought to make people and companies aware of the importance of saving energy. Today, the idea of going green is no longer a fad. It has taken everyone, including the federal government and its IT workforce, by storm.

The Defense, Veterans Affairs and Interior departments are among the agencies adopting Electronics Stewardship Implementation Plans that identify how the agencies will meet requirements for buying products registered with the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT). Some agencies are taking this idea further by integrating these requirements into their information technology optimization plans for the Office of Management and Budget, according to Holly Elwood, headquarters lead for the Environmental Protection Agency's EPEAT program.

Chief information officers and federal IT contract managers can help feds buy EPEAT products more easily by:

• Incorporating language in federal contracts that requires vendors to use only EPEAT-registered products.
• Developing a list of available EPEAT-registered products and providing the list when individuals request non-EPEAT products.
• Adding language to contracts that requires suppliers to report quarterly the number of EPEAT products purchased under a contract, so that the EPEAT totals can be easily tracked.

For more on feds going green:
- check out this Federal Computer Week article