| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 46.18 |
| Liaison | Suzanne Wood |
| Submission Date | April 3, 2020 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
UMass Chan Medical School
OP-11: Sustainable Procurement
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.50 / 3.00 |
Suzanne
Wood Sustainability & Energy Manager Facilities Managment |
Does the institution have written policies, guidelines or directives that seek to support sustainable purchasing across commodity categories institution-wide?:
A copy of the policies, guidelines or directives:
The policies, guidelines or directives:
The 2017 UMass Board of Trustees Sustainability Policy. Includes language on EPP across commodities in Principle 7 (Establish Environmentally-Preferable Products Procurement Program (EPP) and continue to implement annual procurement goals to move toward alignment with the standards of the Environmental Purchasing Advisory Council where ever appropriate and consistent with available funding) and Goal 7.1 requires reporting of annual reporting on purchasing of electronics, office paper, cleaning products, etc. and progress towards meeting established goals.
Does the institution employ Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) when evaluating energy- and water-using products and systems?:
Which of the following best describes the institution’s use of LCCA?:
A brief description of the LCCA policy and/or practices:
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating chemically intensive products and services (e.g. building and facilities maintenance, cleaning and sanitizing, landscaping and grounds maintenance)?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for chemically intensive products and services:
In regard to janitorial, cleaning and sanitizing products, UMass specifies a preference for GreenSeal and other environmentally-friendly materials. For example, in our latest bid for janitorial products the following language was included:
4.2 Green Sustainability Standards
4.2.1 Third Party Certifications: Each Category’s Technical specification includes a list of acceptable third party certifications that are acceptable to the University. The bid response sheet(s) will have a location to indicate the third party certification.
4.2.2 Product Packaging: In your response please provide additional information regarding any sustainability associated with product packaging.
4.2.3 Corporate Sustainability Programs: Indicate in your response your organizations sustainability program
As referenced in the RFP, specifications for janitorial products included post-consumer recycled content minimums, and received and high evaluations score if bidders could provided documentation to third party certifications include Green Seal and ECOLOGO.
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating construction and renovation products (e.g. furnishings and building materials)?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for construction and renovation products:
Massachusetts executive order 484 requires new buildings to be built to LEED Plus green building standards.
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating Information technology (IT) products and services (e.g. computers, imaging equipment, mobile phones, data centers and cloud services)?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for IT products and services:
UMass Medical School IT department has a purchasing standard that only allows EPEAT certified desktops and laptops to be purchased. Those who would like to purchase computer and laptops not included in the standard are required to provide justification of need and receive an exemption.
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating food services (i.e. franchises, vending services, concessions, convenience stores)?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for food services:
UMMS has published the sustainability criteria of its food standard to be applied when evaluating food services. The most recent RFP for food services (which includes franchises, vending, catering, and campus store) included language relating to sustainable dining. The ability and extent the vendors were able to meet the sustainable dining criteria was used as a measure of selection.
This language was included in the RFP
Sustainability: The Parties have a commitment to sustainability and have set forth goals to reduce our impact on the environment. The Contractor shall provide reporting on Sustainable Dining consistent with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) Sustainability Tracking Assessment & Rating System (STARS) either through third party verification (e.g., FarmLogix, Real Food Calculator) or other formats acceptable to the University.
The Contractor shall meet each of the following requirements:
• To the extent feasible, maximize purchases that meet the sustainable dining
criteria consistent with STAR OP7: Sustainable Food and Beverage reporting
criteria (in Exhibit C).
• Maximize the purchase and utilization of foods raised within a 200-mile radius of Worcester, MA.
• Minimize waste associated with dining/campus store operations, including
participation in pre-consumer composting/food donation; ensure compliance with
the Massachusetts Organics Waste Ban, and comply with the campus’s recycling
guidelines to ensure compliance with the Massachusetts Waste Ban.
• Not use expanded polystyrene (Styrofoam) products and plastic bags.
• When replacing equipment or lighting, select Energy Star or energy efficient
models.
The following sustainability directives are required and reported annually to the Board of Trustees.
• Achieve third-party certification for sustainable dining practices (i.e., Green
Restaurant Association).
• Develop and publish a sustainable dining policy that includes specific criteria to support the procurement of environmentally and socially preferable food and
beverage products and/or includes guidelines to reduce or minimize the adverse
environmental and social impacts of dining operations.
• Incorporate a vegan dining program that makes diverse, complete-protein vegan
options available to every member of the campus community at every meal.
• Host low-impact dining events, such as Meatless Mondays.
• Host sustainability-themed meals, such as local harvest meals.
• Host a sustainability-themed food outlet on-site, either independently or with a partner.
• Inform customers about low impact food choices and sustainability practices
through labeling and signage in the cafes.
• Engage in outreach efforts to support learning and research about sustainable food systems.
• Participate in a competition or a commitment program in collaboration with the
UMMS Sustainability Office (e.g., U.S. EPA Food Recovery Challenge; Real
Food Challenge) and/or use a food waste prevention system (e.g., LeanPath) to
track and improve food management practices.
• Modify menus/portion sizes to reduce post-consumer waste.
• Donate food that would otherwise go to waste to feed people (e.g., to a food bank).
• Provide discount for the use of reusable mugs
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating garments and linens?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for garments and linens:
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating professional services (e.g. architectural, engineering, public relations, financial)?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for professional services:
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating transportation and fuels (e.g. travel, vehicles, delivery services, long haul transport, generator fuels, steam plants)?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for transportation and fuels:
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating wood and paper products?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for wood and paper products:
Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating products and services in other commodity categories that the institution has determined to have significant sustainability impacts?:
A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for other commodity categories:
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.