The idea behind this stationery framework contract was to allow all departments and agencies in the Brussels-Capital Region to access what they needed through an in-house store, which includes the supply of green products. The in-house store has 150 items that are kept permanently on stock; other items can be ordered via the framework contract using a catalogue. A 40% discount on the listed price is given to all orders made from organisations participating in the framework contract. Numerous green criteria were incorporated into the tendering process – this included the subject matter, technical specifications and award criteria (40 percent weighting was given to environmental quality). Following ten months of operation, the store has 27 associated organisations (including regional and municipal bodies) using it, out of a possible 57 organisations. The store has sold €190,000 worth of stationery until now and 56 percent of the items sold were green.

The City of Bristol has recently been awarded the European Green Capital Award 2015 for a number of measures including consistently reducing CO 2 e emissions since 2005. In 2011, Bristol let a service contract for the collection of municipal waste and winter road maintenance around the City including the provision of vehicles, staff and depots, road and footpath gritting, snow ploughing and communication with the public. The market changed considerably throughout the previous ten year contract, so it was considered important to use the tender to drive economic and environmental improvements. Pre-qualified bidders participated in a competitive dialogue procedure to identify the best of a variety of approaches to improving recycling rates and reducing transport related emissions. One aim of the contract was to reduce emissions by 720 tonnes per annum. The winning bidder offered CO 2 e reduction of 32%, exceeding the Council’s target of 25%. Best estimates for carbon savings are currently 12% for the first year of the contract. Another objective was to increase recycling rates and the 50% target set by the City has been achieved a year ahead of schedule.

Despite the City of Turku’s ambitious plans of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per capita by 2020 by 30%, compared to 1990 levels, a rise in population resulted in a peak in emissions levels at the turn of the millennium. As a result, the City Council decided to set its procurement of electricity on a new course, sourcing all their requirements from renewable energy. Turku’s new contract – covering all electricity the City purchases – began in 2013. An interesting result of the tendering process was that the green electricity requirement had a minor impact on the purchase price, thus encouraging the city to continue seeking green procurement. Its electricity is now produced from 100% certified renewable sources. Turku's GHG emissions are expected to decrease by 31,000 tonnes a year (2% of total emissions). In terms of the origin, a large proportion of the electricity provided under the contract is generated by hydropower, but part of the mix used by the energy company also includes wind and biomass.

WasteServ is an important stakeholder in the management of waste in Malta. Amongst other responsibilities, the state-owned company collects various items of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) from civic amenity sites. This requires regular procurement of waste transport and management services. Since the introduction of GPP in Malta, WasteServ have incorporated GPP criteria for transportation of WEEE into several tenders – something which previously was not done. Bidders are asked to ensure that all vehicles are equipped with engines meeting EURO IV or better standards (EURO V or VI). The results have shown that most bidders have not had a problem meeting the EURO IV requirements; some offer to invest in upgrading their fleets and bid in subsequent tenders. This demonstrates that the inclusion of green criteria in tenders issued by WasteServ in this area serves to send a strong signal to the market about its increasingly ambitious environmental requirements.

Addressing supplies of paper and other office materials is one of Ghent’s most recent endeavours on sustainable procurement, with a new framework contract set to begin in January 2014. By claiming or preferring sustainable products and methods, Ghent has created awareness in paper and office supplies around these topics, reaching suppliers (potential and current) and city employees. Moreover, once the contract begins, the number of deliveries of office supplies will be reduced by 85%, by reducing ordering and thus delivery frequency from daily to twice a month, or monthly. The new contract will see the City make better strategic use of its purchasing power, which will result in improvements for several of its municipal departments - both in terms of environmental sustainability, and resource efficiency.

Sixteen years ago, it was decided that appropriate measures would be taken to ensure that The Municipality of Preddvor, located in the north-western Alpine part of Slovenia, would become as energy independent as possible. As a result, Preddvor’s CO 2 emissions have decreased by nearly 40%. In order to take concrete steps towards energy self sufficiency, in May 2009 the Municipal Council made a decision to invest in a low-energy kindergarten facility. In November 2012, the first passive wooden kindergarten in Slovenia received permission for use. The new building received the Gold medal for “Most energy efficient public building” (awarded by EKO Fund, International Craft fair of Celje and My home edition).

This guide was developed with support from the SEAD Procurement Working Group and aims to assist all countries in the development and improvement of energy-efficient public procurement programs.

This collection of best practice examples has been produced by the SCI-Network, Sustainable Construction and Innovation through Procurement. It is comprised by 40 real-life projects on innovative solutions within public construction works.