Green Public Procurement in Japan - Global Ecolabelling Network

Green Public Procurementin JapanMinistry of the Environment, Japan

1. The Green Purchasing Law(The Law Concerning the Promotion of Eco-FriendlyGoods and Services by the State and OtherEntities)

(1) Objectives of the Green Purchasing LawObjectivesGoods and Services that contribute to reducingEnvironmental Loads (Eco-Friendly Goods and Services)• Promoting Greener Purchasing by Public Organizations• Providing Information on Eco-Friendly Goods and ServicesEstablishment of an Environmentally Friendly andSustainable Society

(2) Mechanism of the Green Purchasing Law(1)Promotion of Green Purchasing by Ministriesand AgenciesArticle 6Establishment of the Basic Policy for theProcurement of Eco-Friendly Goods etc.・Direction for Promoting Green Procurement・Designated Procurement Items and Evaluation CriteriaMinistries and AgenciesArticle7Each Organization creates and publicizes a ProcurementPolicyProcurement of Goods and Services bas ed onProcurement PoliciesReport on the results and achievements of GreenProcurementArticle 9Requests from the Minister of the Environment andother ministries to be taken into accountBasic Policy・Basic Policy is revised every year inthe following procedures.Public offering proposal, Investigative commission byacademic expert, Public comment, Cabinet decision・Designated Procurement Items aredefined by environmental specs.( It isn’t appoint individual products )http://www.env.go.jp/en/laws/policy/green/2.pdfMinistries and agencies should notincrease or adjustTheir total procurement amount forthe reason of implementing this law.

Mechanism of the Green Purchasing Law(2)Article 10Local Governments•Create or update existing versions ofGreen Procurement Policies every fiscalyear• Procure Goods and Services based onthe Policies2007 Data - taken from a questionnaire onGreen PurchasingIntelligibility for Significance of the green purchase47 Prefectures/17 Major citiesDistricts/CitiesTowns/VillagesTotal0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%Article 5Responsibility for Businesses/ Citizens•Consciously purchase eco- friendlygoods as much as possibleOver 75% 50-74% 25-49% 25% OTHERStatus of procurement policies47 Prefectures/17 Major citiesDistricts/CitiesTowns/Villages9.244100Total29.10% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%Status of procurement policies

Mechanism of the Green Purchasing Law(3)Provide Appropriate Information onEnvironmentally Friendly Goods and ServicesManufacturersProvide environmental informationon their productsEnvironmental LabelingOrganizationsPromote eco-labeling programshighlighting their scientific analysis,while complying with internationaleco-labeling standardsThe Government・ Manage and analyze information provided by manufacturers and environmentallabeling organizations・ Provide guidelines on appropriate information methods on eco-friendly goodsand services

(3).Overview of the Basic Policy (1)Basic Philosophy for Procurement of Eco-Friendly Goods• Environmental attributes should be considered in addition to price andquality considerations• Consideration from environmentally diverse viewpoints:– Products that contribute to the formation of a socio-economic systemthrough an environmentally sound material cycle– Products that contribute to reducing greenhouse gases• Consider reducing environmental impacts throughout the product’slifecycle, from manufacture to disposal.• Commit to long-term use, correct utilization, and appropriate disposal ofprocured goods and services– (separation into appropriate waste streams)

Overview of the Basic Policy (2)Designated Procurement Items and Evaluation Criteria• As a general rule, clear numeric data shall be used for selectingdesignated procurement items.• If clear numeric criteria cannot be established, attributes that contributeto reducing environmental impact shall be defined as “factors forconsideration.”• As needed, these standards can be revised in response to productimprovement, market development, and further development of ourscientific knowledge of the products.• When items included in the designated procurement items list becomereadily available in the marketplace, the item shall be omitted from thelisting.

(4)The Designated Procurement Items List 1CategoriesDesignated Procurement ItemsPaper(7Items)Stationery(82 Items)Office Furniture(10 Items)Office Automation Machines(17 Items)Mobile Telephone(2 Items)Home Electronic Appliances(6 Items)Air Conditioners, etc.(3 Items)Water Heaters, etc.(4 Items)Lighting(5 Items)Vehicles, etc.(5 Items)Copier Paper, Printer Paper, Toilet Paper, and 4 other itemsBallpoint Pens, Scissors, Glue, and 79 other itemsChairs, Desks, Shelves, and 7 other itemsCopiers, Printers, Fax Machines, and 14 other itemsCellular-Phone, PHSElectric Refrigerators, and 5 other itemsAir Conditioners, Gas Heat Pump Air Conditioners, Space HeatersElectric Hot Water Supply System, Gas Cooking Appliances, and 2other itemsFluorescent Lighting Equipment, Fluorescent Light Bulbs, LEDlighting equipment and 2 other itemsVehicles, ETC Adaptable Car Accessories, VICS Adaptable CarAccessories, Tire, Engine Oil

The Designated Procurement Items List 2CategoriesFire Extinguishers(1 Item)Uniforms and Work Clothes(2 Items)Interior Fixtures/ Bedding(10 Items)Work Gloves(1 Item)Other Fiber Products(3 Items)Facilities(6 Items)Emergency goods(6 Items)Public-Works Projects(62 Items)Services(14 Items)Total (19 Categories)Fire ExtinguishersUniforms, Work ClothesDesignated Procurement ItemsCurtains, Carpets, Blankets, Comforters, and 6 other itemsWork GlovesTents, Tarps, Safety NetsSolar Power Generation Systems, Garbage Disposals, and 4 otheritemsWater in plastic bottle, Preservative precooked rice, Biscuits,Canned foods, Pouch-packed foods and Canned fuelPortland Blast Furnace Cement, Pavement Material, FlushableToilets, Green of Rooftops, and 56 other itemsPrinting, Cafeterias, Automobile Repair, and 11 other items246 Items

2. Achievement of GreenPurchasing

• How far didthe Government’s Green Purchasing improve?Achievements of Goods & Service1801601401201008060402001009080706050403020100 %FY2006Goods & Service 156 ItemsRatio over 95% 147 ItemsAbout 94% Items are ratioover 95%We check low ratio items toknow the reason.Concerning automobiles,since the end of FY 2004,all official vehicles havebeen replaced by lowemission vehicles.Over 95% Items %Ratio: Designated Procurement Items included in theGovernment’s Procurement / Total Procurement

100%80%Quantity of Products with Reduced EnvironmentalImpacts Disseminated in the Market(2)This graph showsmarket share ofDesignated procurementitems of 2000 and 2006FY200660%40%20%0%0% 20% 40% FY200060% 80% 100%This area is that marketshare disseminate from2000.All 10 items that wecheck disseminateshare from 2000.

(3) The Decline of the price involving the dissemination ofDesignated Procurement ItemsPurcased (t)Procurement PolicyIssued by Ministries800000700000600000500000400000300000Amount of Copier Paper Purchasedi.e. ○○Ministry:100% recycled pulp content: Procurement goal 100%4,0003,5003,0002,5002,0001,500Cost (A4 per a box)Regular Items: Green Purchasing Items3062 yen2930 yen(2005)20000010000002000 2001 2002 2003 2004 20051,0005000FYEco-friendly PaperRegular PaperEco-friendly PaperRegular PaperGreen Purchasing Law Established in May 2000Government Procurement (Ministries and Agencies)79.2%(2000)→98.9%(2005)

(4) Reduce Procurement QuantityProcurement Quantity of Copier Paper90000800007000070000600006000050000500004000040000300003000020000200001000010000(t) 002002 2003 2004 2005Procurement QuantityFY 2005: 58,008tFY 2006: 57,676tReduction of Procurement Quantity isabout 0.6%(2005→2006)33257,676FY 2006Reduction

3. Factor of Japanese Success

Why did Ministries & Agencies become a highenforcement percentage?Procurement Policy of MoE (FY2006)Report on the results of MoE (FY2005)

Cooperate of Green purchasing actions in JapanLaw on PromotingGreen PurchasingMain target: Public SectorStart:2000~19 Categories, 246 Items(2009.02)These Two Activities started before GreenPurchasing Law and were well known.These Two Activities spread Green products toprivate sector rapidly and contribute to promotewhole market to spread Green products.Type I eco-labeling(ISO14024)Start :1989~First runner standard47 CategoriesAbout 4,500Products(2009.03)Start :1996~About 3000 members(2,400 companies, 300governments, 300 NGOs)GPN has taken a leadingrole in promoting greenpurchasing in Japan

Why do we make much of participation ofsmall local governments ?FY 20078.055.218.540.1Annual Expenditure ofPublic SectorExpenditure of Local Governmentis about 3 times scales ofExpenditure of Ministry & Agency291.9GDP of Japan515.9 Trillion Yen102.2Local GovernmentMinistry&AgencySocial Security etc.Gross domestic capital formation (private-sector)Private final consuption expendicureNet Export

4. The Green Contract Law(The Law Concerning the Promotion ofContractsConsidering Reduction of Emissions ofGreenhouse Gases and Others by the StateandOther Entities)

Comparison between Green PurchasingLaw and Green Contract LawfeaturePurposeTargetItem &ContractContentetcGreen Purchasing Law・Discipline environmental performance inproducts and services・ Environment-considering within Generalcompetitive biddingRecommend procurement of products andservices satisfying a certain level ofenvironmental performanceInstitutions (government, independentadministrative institutions, nationaluniversities etc)237 items in 18 categoriesPaper, Stationary, Office AutomationMachines, Vehicles, etc, Uniforms and WorkClothes, Facilities, Disaster PreventionSupplies, Public-Works Projects, Services,etc・Approved by the Cabinet regardingevaluationcriteria for eco-friendly goods, etc・Consider environment with the BasicPolicy・Institutions publish the result ofprocurementGreen Contract Law・ Discipline the structure of methodcontract・ Discipline recommended contract method(comprehensive evaluation or proposal method)Contract with a supplier whose productsand services delivering optimalperformance totally in price etcsame as on the leftFour patterns of contract;Electric power, Automobiles, ESCO projects,Building designs・ Approved by the Cabinet regarding acontract method, etc・Consider environment with the BasicPolicy・Institutions publish the result of contracts8