Green Information Technology Strategic Plan - Departmental ...

Efforts by OCIO will also enable
America’s producers and
rural families to operate in an
environmentally responsible manner.
tremendous opportunity to not only deliver a better service
and make our customers’ lives more convenient, but also as
a way to enable our customers to have a positive
environmental impact. By offering online access to county
office programs such as grants, loans, and entitlements,
USDA can prevent its customers from taking multiple trips
to the county offices, making it possible for our customers to
save on fuel costs, time, and effort. These efforts by the
OCIO will also enable America’s producers and rural families
to operate in an environmentally responsible manner.
5.1.3 Other Stakeholders
Other stakeholders can be classified as consumers, taxpayers,
suppliers, and the general American population. USDA is a
diverse and complex organization with programs that touch
the lives of all Americans everyday. The USDA OCIO has
the responsibility to further enable Web-based programs and
push the content of our research to the American public via
the Internet in order to reduce waste and increase efficiencies
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that can be passed on to the general population. The OCIO
can also have a positive green impact on its vendors and
suppliers by holding them accountable for providing
products that are green in nature and constructed using
green methods. By doing so, an environmentally responsible
culture is created and green practices engrained in all
programs in which USDA OCIO is involved.
5.2
Electronic Systems
The OCIO has primary responsibility to supervise and
coordinate within USDA the design, acquisition,
maintenance, use and disposal of Information Technology
(IT) by USDA Agencies. A major part of this responsibility
falls into the purchase and use of electronic systems
throughout USDA and interface with the American public.
More than ever, electronic systems enable people to work
remotely from anywhere in the world. Another benefit to
the advancement in electronic systems is the reduction in
waste. As programs are continuously moving to an online
medium, the need to print, sign, and fax documents is
fading. Internet expansion into many rural areas permits
more and more USDA programs to be placed online. The
OCIO can also conserve energy, reduce waste, and reduce
cost with enterprise applications that create efficiencies
USDA-wide and eliminate hardware and software
redundancies across the Department.
5.3
Facilities
The USDA has more than 100,000 employees working out
of over 25,000 USDA owned and operated facilities
worldwide. USDA is responsible for funding a vast amount
of utility services to keep these buildings operating. By
incorporating green IT innovation in USDA buildings, the
opportunities to achieve a high green standard are endless.
Simple steps such as incorporating power management,
water conservation technologies, consolidation and acquiring
alternative energy sources can be implemented to conserve
numerous natural resources.
Green Information Technology Strategic Plan