It is summer time and your office just finished getting a Green Office Makeover, the first critical step in making your business green. You’ve asked your Eco-Consultant to tell you about innovative ways to further green up while cutting costs, and she has recommended green roofs and green walls, green features that not only beautify your building, but also save you money.

Green roofs are basically roofs with soil supporting plant life. They can be intensive (with more than one foot of soil) or extensive (with 2-6 inches of soil). Similarly, green walls support plant life and can make your office building seem fully integrated with its natural environment. Both of these features provide incredible benefits to your office building if well built. These include:

• Insulating from energy losses and sound, reducing energy bills during the summer;
• Reducing air and water pollution;
• Reducing stormwater runoff;
• Reducing urban heat island effect;
• Open green space and natural habitat;
• Increasing the service life of the roof membrane;
• Increaing the building’s property value; and
• Potential production of fruits and vegetables.

Both of these features are ideal for your office building. They will give your building a green spin and at the same time cut your costs. The payback period for the investment is usually reasonable, so that you will save money over the lifetime of these features. If you want to learn more about how you can build these features in your office building, contact your local Eco-Consultant. If you haven’t yet, make sure you get a Green Office Makeover first.

Water has become one of the biggest environmental issues of our time. Over the last few years, it has become more and more clear that water supplies are diminishing and that to secure freshwater for future uses, we must make great strides to conserve water today. Green Irene offers many ways for offices to save water, from simply providing Green Office Makeovers to determine near-maximum to maximum water-saving potential to selling products that can help you dramatically cut water use while saving money.

To further show why we should be doing the most we can to conserve water, check out the 5 reasons we’ve outlined below.

1. Money. As you use water in your office to do anything, you are likely using heat to warm your water. Undoubtedly, this heat costs money, and so it is in your office’s interest to save money on water by conserving it.

2. Greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, when you use energy to heat water, you are likely contributing carbon dioxide emissions as a result of the combustion of natural gas. While there isn’t yet a cost to emitting carbon dioxide, the principle gas that is causing global warming, there will eventually be one as a result of climate change regulation. Conserving water can help reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and in the long-run will also cut costs related to carbon regulation.

3. Wildlife. In water-scarce regions, like the Southwestern U.S., water is a critical resource for the survival of wildlife. For example, wild salmon runs are highly dependent on the availability of water, and high levels of water withdrawals from water bodies can easily threaten the survival of such species. Recognizing that ecosystems need water as well to function well, it is important to conserve water in order to have sufficient water available for wildlife.

4. Recreation. People might take water-related recreation for granted, but there are many recreation areas that confront water problems as a result of pollution and overuse. Many recreation areas depend on available water to ensure adequate quality and provide sufficient quantities for recreational purposes. Conserving water can help ensure that these needs are met as well.

5. Wastewater treatment. Finally, one of the hidden costs of using water is treating it once it is used. In most cases, whether the water is clean or not, water goes straight to a treatment plant where it must go through a process to ensure its quality is adequate. The more water that has to be treated, the more offices have to pay through taxes in order to meet that service. As a result, conserving water can help reduce your taxes, making money available to spend on other things.

There are many other reasons why offices should conserve water, ranging from water needed for food production and power plant cooling to water from nonrenewable sources being needed for the future. If you want to learn more about how to conserve water, get in touch with your local Eco-Consultant. Also check out water-conserving products at ShopGreenIrene.

Commentary: Green Irene offers products and services that can help your home or office begin reducing its water use immediately. Our Green Home and Green Office Makeovers are your first step to assessing what you can do to reduce your water use and your overall footprint. You can find a Local Green Irene Eco-Consultant right away to schedule an appointment. Green Irene also carries various products at ShopGreenIrene that can help your home or office begin reducing water use right away. Finally, Green Irene’s greenbase contains many tips and techniques that can also help you reduce water use and help California or any other state meet water use reduction goals. Learn more today by contacting your Local Green Irene Eco-Consultant.

Excerpted from Water and Wastewater Use:

The Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) has formally adopted policy principles supporting the goal of reducing per capita water use by 20 percent statewide by 2020 and committing the association to aggressively support water conservation and water use efficiency as part of a comprehensive solution to the state’s water challenges.

The principles, adopted on March 30 by ACWA’s Board of Directors, express strong support for achieving the 20 percent aggregate reduction in water use statewide in a manner that recognizes local conditions. The conservation and water use efficiency principles give urban and agricultural water agencies flexibility to implement programs that work for their service areas.

The principles are intended to expand on ACWA’s 2005 water policy document, “No Time to Waste: A Blueprint for California Water,” and guide the association as it considers legislative and regulatory proposals on conservation.

“With these principles, we are significantly raising the bar on conservation as an industry,” ACWA Executive Director Timothy Quinn said. “We are making a strong statement in support of achieving real reductions in water use statewide. We want to own the goal but ensure local flexibility to get there. We are committed to working with the legislature, state agencies, and other stakeholders to create a policy framework and sound technical foundation to do that.”

The principles state ACWA’s support for measuring, reporting, and monitoring water use statewide as a way of providing accountability and transparency toward meeting conservation goals. They also state ACWA’s support for the use of volumetric pricing wherever appropriate for urban and agricultural water supplies to encourage conservation and efficiency.

The ACWA Board also adopted a formal policy statement on proposals related to Delta Vision. The statement expresses support for the physical solutions laid out by the Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force and the cabinet-level Delta Vision Committee and commits ACWA to work cooperatively to develop an effective governance approach to the Delta.

ACWA is a statewide association of public agencies whose 450 members are responsible for about 90 percent of the water delivered in California. For more information, visit www.acwa.com.

With green becoming mainstream in the operations of thousands of businesses, you may be wondering what else you can do to further green up. Most offices tend to organize regular events for various reasons. Ever thought your event had a significant environmental impact? Have you ever considered not only greening your event, but cutting event costs at the same time as you green up? You don’t have to think too much any longer; we’re here to help.

Green Irene offers a Green Office Event Checklist. The Checklist allows you to identify aspects of your office’s event that have a significant environmental impact based on categories, such as choosing a venue accessible by public transportation, sending e-mail invitations, and using reusable silverware, and then prepare for them in advance by following the specific recommendations for those items you identify.

Whether your event is in your office or in a large venue, you can identify specific targets for which you can prepare in advance to help you achieve real measurable results. The Checklist provides recommendations to help you reduce energy use and carbon emissions, cut on waste and save resources, and educate your guests, all while reducing your overall costs.

Green Irene believes that greening your event is not just responsible, but also saves you money by eliminating unnecessary costs and sets you apart as a green leader. To find more about the Green Office Event Checklist, ask your Local Green Irene Eco-Consultant.