South Dakota Ag Connection - Green Electronics Council Recognizes SDSU

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Green Electronics Council Recognizes SDSU
South Dakota Ag Connection - 08/03/2020

South Dakota State University was recognized as one of the 2020 EPEAT Purchaser Award winners. SDSU and the other organizations were honored by the Green Electronics Council, the organization that manages the EPEAT ecolabel.

Overall, 74 organizations, including cities, states, U.S. Federal agencies and companies from around the globe were honored for their decision to purchase sustainable information technology products.

"It is critical that we purchase sustainable IT products so as to minimize our negative environmental impact and maximize the health of our people and planet. It is nice to have certifications such as EPEAT to affirm that the products our campus purchase are sustainable," said Jennifer McLaughlin, SDSU's sustainability specialist.

More than 96% of SDSU purchases of IT products are EPEAT certified, including nearly 85% at the gold level.

The EPEAT Purchaser Awards recognize excellence in sustainable procurement of IT products. EPEAT Purchasers earn a star for each product category in which they purchase EPEAT-registered IT products and all of the eligibility requirements have been met.

One star is awarded to an organization for each product category in which all of the eligibility requirements have been met. The current product categories are as follows:

- Computers and Displays (desktops, displays, notebooks, integrated desktop computers, workstation desktops, thin clients);

- Imaging Equipment (copiers, digital duplicators, fax machines, mailing machines, multifunction devices, printers, scanners);

- Mobile Phones;

- Servers; and

- Televisions.

Using the EPEAT Benefits Calculators, GEC calculates the environmental and cost benefits of the sustainable purchases made by each award winner. When combined, the 2020 EPEAT Purchaser Award winners realized cost savings exceeding $172 million across the lifetime of their 2019 purchased electronic products. Along with these significant cost savings, the 74 award winners also recognized considerable environmental benefits, including combined greenhouse gas reductions equivalent to removing 227,540 passenger cars from the road for a year; a reduction of more than 3,300 metric tons of hazardous waste; solid waste savings equivalent to that produced by 11,518 average U.S. households over a year; and a reduction in energy usage by nearly 2 million MWh.

"EPEAT Purchaser Award winners are champions in the practice of sustainable procurement. Their leadership creates sustainability gains not only for their own organizations but for all purchasers of electronics globally by creating demand for sustainable products," said Nancy Gillis, CEO of the Green Electronics Council. The awards ceremony was originally planned to take place in Atlanta this year but was moved to a virtual event due to the pandemic. "COVID-19 has demonstrated the kinds of workplace and supply chain disruptions that we may expect due to climate change in coming years. It is essential for large-scale purchasers to continue with their procurement of essential commodities like sustainable electronics, to mitigate the consequences of our behaviors that add to the threat against People and Planet. EPEAT makes it easy for organizations to identify a wide array of credible sustainable products from firms that care enough to put these products into the market."

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