The U.S. General Services Administration announced the GreenGov Supply Chain Partnership and Small Business Pilot, a voluntary collaboration between the federal government and its suppliers to create a greener, more efficient supply chain.  The program was announced at a supply chain summit in Chicago hosted by White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Nancy Sutley and GSA Administrator Martha Johnson.

The GreenGov Supply Chain Partnership is a voluntary, GSA pilot program to promote clean energy and cut waste and pollution in the federal supply chain using greenhouse gas emissions as a measurement.  Federal suppliers that join the GreenGov Supply Chain Partnership agree to voluntarily measure and report their organization's greenhouse gas emissions.  Participating companies will share their experiences to help GSA develop a phased, incentive-based approach to developing contracting advantages to companies that track and disclose their greenhouse gas emissions.

The partnership includes a Small Business Pilot Program that will explore the benefits and challenges of measuring greenhouse gas emissions with small business participants.  Small businesses that have enrolled in the pilot will receive technical assistance through GSA to measure, report, and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions as a part of the effort.

"The federal government is the single-largest energy consumer in the U.S. economy and purchases more than $500bn in goods and services every year," Sutley said.  "It is our responsibility to lead by example to improve efficiency, eliminate waste, and promote clean energy in our supply chain."

Johnson said, "As one of the largest purchasers of goods and services in the world, GSA is in a unique position to collaborate with industry.  Businesses across the globe are already realizing cost-saving, waste-reducing efficiencies and competitive advantages by decreasing greenhouse gas pollution.  GSA will leverage these private-sector best practices and the GreenGov Supply Chain Partnership to move the federal government toward a cleaner, more efficient supply chain."

Source: GSA