Procurement decisions aim to support and mirror Council’s resolutions on sustainability including goals and targets relating to Halve Waste, the abolishment of single-use plastics, climate change, energy use and carbon emissions. Environmental procurement practices result in numerous benefits, Council aims to achieve and influence the following through its supply arrangements:
- improving the efficiency of resource use and reuse
- landfill diversion, reduced waste and pollution
- encouraging biodiversity and habitat protection
- provision of markets for environmentally preferable products
- increasing recycling and support to make recycling activities more viable
- socially just and environmentally sustainable supply chains
- encouraging the adoption of cleaner technologies
- encouraging industries to produce products with lower environmental impact with whole of life, circular economy, ethical disposal, or reuse options
- Carbon mitigation and/or abatement
- Resilience to a changing climate.
Value-for-money purchasing decisions made by the council are made on the basis of whole-of-life cost and non-price factors including contribution to the council’s sustainability objectives.
When evaluating offers, the overall environmental impact of products will be considered including the reasonable anticipated product lifecycle, with options to:
- Remove (or eliminate – is the product really needed?)
- Reduce (can the outcome be achieved with less of the product or fewer products?)
- Re-cover (can the product be re-covered for re-use or recycling?)
- Re-use (will the product last a long time, and can it be used multiple times?)
- Recycle (can the product be easily and effectively recycled?