Portland, OR Environmentally Preferable Procurement
Type: Municipal Code
Status: Adopted
Source File: http://www.portlandonline.com/auditor/index.cfm?a=128064&c=37766
Text:
5.33.080 Environmentally Preferable Procurement.
A. Definitions:
1. "Alternative Environmentally Preferable Paper" is paper with environmental attributes beyond those of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines (CPG). These attributes include paper that is unbleached or is bleached without the use of chlorine compounds, goes beyond the EPA CPG post-consumer recycled content standard, is not derived from genetically modified organisms, or is made with fibers that come from certified, well managed forests, agricultural residues, sustainably-produced tree-free crops, or recycled non-tree fibers.
2. "Biodegradable" means capable of being broken down, especially into innocuous products, by the action of living things such as microorganisms.
3. "Energy Star® compliant" products mean products that meet or exceed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Energy Star® criteria for energy efficiency.
4. "Environmentally Preferable" means products or services that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment when compared with competing products or services that serve the same purpose. This comparison may consider raw materials acquisition, production, manufacturing, packaging, distribution, reuse, operation, maintenance, or disposal of the product or service.
5. "Industrial Oil" means any compressor, turbine or bearing oil, hydraulic oil, metal-working oil or refrigeration oil.
6. "Life Cycle Analysis" means the comprehensive examination of a product’s environmental and economic aspects and potential impacts throughout its lifetime, including raw material extraction, transportation, manufacturing, use, and disposal.
7. "Lubricating Oil" means any oil intended for use in an internal combustion crankcase, transmission, gearbox or differential or an automobile, bus, truck, vessel, plane, train, heavy equipment or machinery powered by an internal combustion engine.
8. "Post-Consumer Waste," means a finished material that would normally be disposed of as solid waste, having completed its life cycle as a consumer item. “Post-consumer waste” does not include manufacturing waste.
9. "Price Premium Payback Period" means the number of years it takes for the savings in operating costs to offset any additional upfront price of the product versus a lower price, less-energy efficient model. It is calculated by dividing the price premium by the annual savings in operating costs.
10. "Readily Biodegradable" shall be defined according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) measurement guidelines.
11. "Reblended Latex Paint" or consolidated latex paint, contains 100 percent post-consumer content from good-quality surplus with no virgin materials such as resins and colorants added.
12. "Recyclable Product" means a product that, after its intended end use, can demonstrably be diverted from the solid waste stream for use as a raw material in the manufacture of another product, preferably higher value uses.
13. "Recycled Latex Paint," or reprocessed latex paint, means latex paint with a post-consumer recycled content level that at a minimum meets the requirements specified by the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Recovered Materials Advisory Notice (RMAN) for reprocessed latex paint.
14. "Recycled Material" means any material that would otherwise be a useless, unwanted or discarded material except for the fact that the material still has useful physical or chemical properties after serving a specific purpose and can, therefore, be reused or recycled.
15. "Recycled Oil" means used oil that has been prepared for reuse as a petroleum product by refining, reclaiming, reprocessing or other means provided that the preparation or use is operationally safe, environmentally sound and complies with all laws and regulations.
16. “Recycled Paper” means a paper product with not less than:
- a. Fifty percent of its fiber weight consisting of secondary waste materials; or
- b. Twenty-five percent of its fiber weight consisting of post-consumer waste.
17. “Recycled PETE” means post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate material.
18. “Recycled Product” means all materials, goods and supplies, not less than fifty percent of the total weight of which consists of secondary and post-consumer waste with not less than ten percent of its total weight consisting of post-consumer waste. “Recycled product” includes any product that could have been disposed of as solid waste, having completed its life cycle as a consumer item, but otherwise is refurbished for reuse without substantial alteration of the product’s form.
19. "Retreaded Tire" means any tire that uses an existing casing for the purpose of vulcanizing new tread to such casing that meets all performance and quality standards in the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards determined by the United States Department of Transportation.
20. "Reusable Product" means a product, such as a washable food or beverage container or a refillable ballpoint pen, that can be used several times for an intended use before being discarded.
21. “Secondary Waste Materials” means fragments of products or finished products of a manufacturing process that has converted a virgin resource into a commodity of real economic value. “Secondary waste materials” includes post-consumer waste. “Secondary waste materials” does not include excess virgin resources of the manufacturing process. For paper, “secondary waste materials" does not include fibrous waste generated during the manufacturing process such as fibers recovered from waste water or trimmings of paper machine rolls, mill broke, wood slabs, chips, sawdust or other wood residue from a manufacturing process.
22. "Used Oil" means a petroleum-based oil which through use, storage or handling has become unsuitable for its original purpose due to the presence of impurities or loss of original properties.
23. "Virgin Oil" means oil that has been refined from crude oil and that has not been used or contaminated with impurities.
24. "VOC" (Volatile Organic Compound) means an organic compound characterized by a tendency to readily evaporate into the air, contributing to indoor air pollution and photochemical smog.
B. Environmentally Preferable Procurement General Policy. In developing plans, drawings, work statements, specifications, or other product descriptions, the City shall insure, to the maximum extent economically feasible, the purchase of environmentally preferable products or services that comply with the City's Sustainable City Principles. This includes, but is not limited to, products that are durable, recyclable, reusable, readily biodegradable, energy efficient, made from recycled materials, and nontoxic. Furthermore, the City shall purchase products and services based on long-term environmental and operating costs, and find ways to include environmental and social costs in short-term prices.
C. Recycled Materials and Products Price Preference.
1. In accordance with ORS 279A.125, notwithstanding provisions of law requiring the City to award a contract to the lowest responsible bidder or best proposer or provider of a quotation, and subject to PCC Section 5.33.080 C.2., the City shall give preference to the procurement of goods manufactured from recycled materials.
2. In comparing goods from two or more Bidders or Proposers, and at least one Bidder or Proposer offers goods manufactured from recycled materials, and at least one Bidder or Proposer does not, the City shall select the Bidder or Proposer offering goods manufactured from recycled materials if each of the following conditions exits:
- a. The recycled product is available;
- b. The recycled product meets applicable standards;
- c. The recycled product can be substituted for a comparable non-recycled product;
- d. The recycled product's costs do not exceed the costs of non-recycled products by more than five percent, or higher if a written determination is made by the City and set forth in the Solicitation Document. For purposes of making the foregoing determination, the City shall consider the costs of the goods following any adjustments the City makes to the price of the goods for purposes of evaluation pursuant to PCC Section 5.33.610; and
- e. Offerors, when required in the Solicitation Document, certify in their submitted Offers the minimum, if not exact, percentage of post-consumer waste and total recovered materials content in the products offered.
D. Purchasing Environmentally Preferable Paper & Related Equipment.
1. The City shall procure recycled content paper and other alternative environmentally preferable paper according to the City's Sustainable Paper Use policy (Resolution No. 36146).
2. In accordance with the City's Sustainable Paper Use Policy, the City shall procure printers, copiers, and fax machines that, at a minimum, have duplex capability.
E. Purchasing Recycled Oils.
1. Preference for Oil Products with Greater Recycled Content: The City shall require that purchases of lubricating oil and industrial oil be made from the vendor whose oil product contains the greater percentage of recycled oil, unless a specific oil product containing recycled oil is:
- a. Not available within a reasonable period of time or in quantities necessary to meet the City’s needs;
- b. Not able to meet the performance requirements or standard recommended by the equipment or vehicle manufacturer, including any warranty requirements; or
- c. Available only at a cost that exceeds the price preference established in PCC Section 5.33.080 C.
2. In accordance with ORS 279B.240 the City shall ensure that its procedures and specifications for the procurement of lubricating oil and industrial oil do not exclude recycled oils and do not require oils to be manufactured from virgin materials.
F. Purchasing Retreaded Tires.
1. All tires for use on the non-steering wheels of City vehicles shall be equipped with retreaded tires unless one of the following exceptions applies:
- a. The vehicles are emergency vehicles as defined in ORS 801.260;
- b. The vehicles are other fire suppression or emergency assistance vehicles;
- c. The vehicles are passenger-carrying vehicles with a gross weight rating of one ton or more; or
- d. The cost per mile differential of the retreaded tires exceeds the five percent preference set forth in PCC Section 5.33.080 C.
G. Purchasing Energy Efficient Products.
1. As available, the City shall procure products that meet or exceed Energy Star® criteria for energy efficiency. This applies to:
- a. any equipment that uses electricity, natural gas, or fuel oil; and
- b. products that indirectly impact energy use, such as, but not limited to, windows, doors and skylights.
2. City procurement language for such products described in 5.33.080 G.1 shall request from vendors:
- a. Evidence that the equipment meets or exceeds the Energy Star® criteria for energy efficiency; and
- b. Savings analyses including: energy (kWh/yr, therms/yr, gallons of gasoline/yr, etc.), operating costs ($/yr), and the price premium payback (years).
3. Price Differential and Payback Period: While many Energy Star® compliant products are currently available for no price premium, should a price differential exist, the City will apply a simple life cycle cost analysis. Purchases where the price premium payback period is within five years or less shall be encouraged. Where the price premium payback period is longer than five years, Energy Star® compliant products may still be used; however, the City shall not be obligated to purchase and use Energy Star® compliant products in those circumstances.
H. Purchasing Interior/Exterior Architectural Paint Products.
1. All paint must be low-VOC by complying with the current standards set forth by the California South Coast Air Quality Management District Rule 1113 for Architectural Coatings or the VOC and chemical component limits of Green Seal's Standard GS-11, section 4.1.
2. Recycled or reblended latex paint with low-VOC properties, as demonstrated by periodic tests conducted by the manufacturer, shall be given preference and used whenever feasible to the extent that the price differential between the recycled or reblended and virgin latex paint does not exceed the five percent price preference set forth in PCC Section 5.33.080 C.
3. To reduce waste and support the recycled latex paint market, all surplus latex paint shall be recycled using a local latex paint recycling program. Surplus paint includes all latex paint in excess of quantities stored for touch-up purposes. Latex paint stored for touch-up purposes may not exceed 5 percent or 5 gallons, whichever is smaller, by volume, to the nearest gallon.