Reading Borough Council identified high levels of NOx emissions resulting from road traffic and in 2009 launched an air quality action plan to try and tackle this issue. In 2012, the Council carried out an open, technology neutral tender for a number of services using eight shuttle buses to link key sites within the Town. Technical specifications set a minimum Euro 4 emission standard (as second- hand vehicles could be offered) but companies offering higher emissions standards scored points in the award phase, as did those who put forward innovative options to improve environmental performance. The winning bidder offered a service using new CNG powered buses, with an EEV emissions standard. The gas used to power the vehicles is 100% certified biomethane produced in the UK. NOx emissions are an estimated 30-50% lower than the Euro V diesel bus models available at the time the tender was launched. The services began in April 2013 and due to a 20% passenger increase, ten buses in total are now used.

As a council responsible for providing over 1.3 million school meals a year, East Ayrshire has a lot on its hands. A growing awareness of the health, environmental, social and economic impacts of those meals led it to adopt a new procurement strategy in 2008. The focus was to be on fresh, unprocessed and organic ingredients. An EU-level tender incorporated all these elements, and has had lead to increase take up of school meals as well as other positive results. Independent research carried out by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency indicated that the CO2 emission savings associated with the change in food sourcing for one school alone amounts to 37.7 tonnes per annum. East Ayrshire was also the winner of an Association for Public Service Excellence award in 2011.

The Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa is responsible for the operation and upkeep of a number of buildings in Donostia-San Sebastian, the province’s capital. As part of its environmental strategy, the Council aims to incorporate GPP criteria across a range of its contracts. The high impact associated with heating, cooling, lighting, waste and other aspects of building operation and maintenance make this a priority area for GPP. In 2010 a tender was published for the maintenance of two properties – one residential and one office building. With help from Ihobe (Basque Environmental Management Agency), the Council implemented criteria relating to the skills and experience of the personnel in providing environmentally friendly building maintenance. Contract performance clauses also addressed the waste management plan of the contractor and environmental reporting requirements.

The town of Venelles near Aix-en-Provence has made a strong commitment to reducing its environmental footprint. As part of this commitment, the Mayor and Council of Venelles have supported the implementation of a comprehensive GPP policy since 2007, covering most municipal procurement projects. A recent tender for cleaning products offered the opportunity to put this policy into action. By including criteria for the environmental performance of the products used in its schools, Venelles was able to achieve a healthier setting for students and staff while also reducing the impact associated with the production and packaging of products. A majority of the products purchased are eco-labelled and fully biodegradable. 96 percent of all the products supplied come in refillable packs and with environmentally friendly packaging. Training has also been provided to cleaning personnel on how to use reduced amounts of the products and water.

In 2010, the Provincial Council of Toledo in central Spain adopted a declaration on SPP, established an action plan and a committee to oversee implementation. The procurement of forest products, such as timber, paper and cork has been the first major area of focus for the Council. A tender for outdoor benches to be placed in various municipalities implemented criteria related to the sustainable sourcing of timber. In 2011, 926 certified wood benches were procured for 127 municipalities, which meant a total investment of €140,000. Sustainability criteria are now being extended to further product groups such as cleaning services, catering and IT equipment. Toledo’s Environmental Service is offering advice and assistance to other public authorities in the province.

Madrid’s municipal transport company (EMT) currently operates a fleet of around 2000 buses. In response to emissions targets set by the City of Madrid, EMT carried out an open tender procedure for 165 buses stipulating that they must be; Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), CNG- hybrid or electric models EMT applied the second of three methodologies available under the clean vehicles directive (2009/33/EC), using award criteria to give preference to clean, energy efficient vehicles. Points were given for low fuel consumption, emissions of HC, PM, CO and NOx, noise pollution, in addition to low environmental impact substances and electronic components. The company finally purchased 23 CNG-hybrid buses and 142 CNG buses, meaning it now runs one of Europe’s largest CNG fleets. EMT advise fellow transport operators to stay abreast of the latest technologies and maintain regular contact with all relevant manufacturers in order to achieve the optimal solution, according to requirements.

The City of Luxembourg wished to create a healthier living environment for its citizens and developed an action plan to set out how this could be achieved. As part of this process, existing cleaning products were analysed to test for harmful substances, the majority of which contained at least one. The City recognised that using low environmental impact cleaning products in its public buildings was one way of achieving their environmental goals, in a cost-effective way. In 2013, the City published a tender for cleaning products and services for municipal theatres. Luxembourg’s Environmental Protection Office provided the technical specifications, which included a list of hazardous substances which the bidders were banned from offering, and a second list of substances for which the bidder would receive points, if their products contained less than a certain amount. Each bidder was requested to supply samples of every proposed cleaning product, so that tests could be carried out to ensure banned substances were not present. They were also required to submit new products with at least one month’s notice. In addition, Luxembourg reserved the right to carry out random testing of products being used.

In order to minimise CO2 emissions and the use of natural resources, Stuttgart’s main sewage treatment plant already generates electricity from methane gas, sludge incineration and solar power installations. This case focuses on the next step the Municipality has taken by tendering for a fleet made up entirely of electric vehicles. It has taken advantage of the fact that these vehicles are required to bear weight rather than travel at speed, in order to benefit from the environmental advantages of fully electric trucks. The technical specifications for these alternative fuel vehicles included speed restriction devices to limit the vehicles to 25km/h and hydraulic, energy recovery brakes. The distance to the closest customer service office was part of these award criteria, recognising the importance of reducing disruption by minimising time spent travelling and the environmental costs of travelling long distances for maintenance or repair.

In 2008, the Romanian city of Craiova joined 3 other European cities under the framework of the CIVITAS Mobility, Development and Energy Reduction (MODERN) initiative, co-financed by the European Commission. Through the CIVITAS Initiative, the European Commission aimed to support cities in the implementation of sustainable urban transport strategies. The Local Council of Craiova Municipality’s main objective was to increase the overall quality of life of its citizens through the reduction of pollution generated by transport and the implementation of energy-saving measures. To reach this goal, one of the measures undertaken by the city was to improve the energy efficiency of its existing tramlines. Modernisation of the trams would include the replacement of old drive systems with electric choppers that control the electric current used by the trams. 9 trams were upgraded with the chopper based system, achieving a 35% reduction in energy consumption. These trams were previously out of commission due to the inefficiency of the older system. Due to the installation of this new system, Craiova has been able to reduce the costs of running parts of its electric tram fleet, increased passenger capacity across the system and reduced pollution related to energy consumption. The technology employed in Craiova’s trams is also currently being promoted in the neighbouring countries.