Programme and Operations Policies and Procedures

Environmental Considerations

Document Properties

Environmental Considerations
Responsible Unit	OLPS
Creator	Krishan Batra
Subject	CAP User Guide
Issuance Date	January, 1 2006
Effective date	January, 1 2006
Mandatory Review Date	January, 1 2007
Audience	all UNDP Users
Applicability	For all Procurement Transactions
Replaces	Procurement Manual
Is part of	CAP User Guide

| Relevant Policies	| Roles and Responsibilities
| Flowchart	| Templates and Forms
| Procedures	| Additional Info. & Tools
| Inputs	| Lessons
| Deliverables	| On the Drawing Board

1.0 Description

It is UNDP’s policy to manage its business in an environmentally responsible manner. Environmental responsibility or “green” procurement is the selection of goods and services that minimize environmental impacts. UNDP endeavours to protect the quality and diversity of the environment and continually improve performance in this regard. This means considering the costs of securing raw materials, manufacturing, transporting, storing, handling, using and disposing of products procured.

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2.0 Relevant Policies

UNDP Fin. Rule 121.03(d) (May 2005)

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3.0 Flow Chart

There is no flowchart for this sub-process

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4.0 Procedures

“Green” procurement is rooted in the principle of pollution prevention, which strives to eliminate or to reduce risks to human health and the environment. In order to do so, UNDP staff should evaluate purchases based on a variety of criteria, ranging from the necessity of the purchase, resource consumption, waste generation, environmental impact and health of the users.

UNDP’s “green” procurement policy promotes the four “R” strategies:

• re-think the requirements to reduce environmental impact;
• reduce material consumption;
• recycle materials/waste; and
• reduce energy consumption.

“Green” procurement at the UNDP requires its staff to conduct all activities, including contracting with other entities, in a resource-efficient manner. Thus UNDP will be selective in its choice of products, processes and services to promote the four “R” strategies, taking into consideration the effects of energy consumption, toxicity, ozone depletion, radiation, and the use of recycled materials. To help determine how environmentally friendly the goods and/or services are, UNDP staff should evaluate the applicable Eco-label rating, or the official label for approved “green” products, such as Energy Star, EU Eco-label, Energuide, etc.

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5.0 Inputs

N/A

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6.0 Deliverables

N/A

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7.0 Roles and Responsibilities

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8.0 Templates and Forms

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9.0 Additional Information

UNDP's Green Office Initiative

Green Procurement

International Organization for Standardization

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10.0 Lessons

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11.0 On The Drawing Board

N/A

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