Certification for Green Buildings
The demand to “Go Green” is becoming more prevalent in rules passed at the federal, State, and municipal levels. However, there is a great deal of confusion about the process it takes to go Green. In full application, Green business require sweeping changes including building construction, water and energy usage, interior design, and sustainable practices in the use of resources. The cost of changes on many levels can be prohibitive, and hinder the adoption of Green policies in many building.
The best area to start is to with the basic and affordable levels of janitorial and office operations that can be changed without an expensive overhaul of the company. Going Green can be a substantial financial expenditure that may not be affordable for many businesses. Certification of a Green Building can be a progressive task that turns any standard building into a Green Building that helps the community in the larger Green agenda.
Green Clean Institute provides a federal trademark for GCIC Green Buildings if they will complete a simply Green Survey and transition to a Green certified cleaning service. The cleaning service is frankly the first step in establishing a healthier and Greener office. The Green Survey establishes a baseline for a Green Program, and provides a foundation for improvements on a monthly basis.
Get more information about Green Building certification at www.GreenBusinessLeague.com. Download a copy of the Green Survey, and start the program that can get your facility a Green Building certification in a month’s time. This is not a rubber stamp program. It requires that the cleaning service provide Green products and practices in the cleaning of the facility.
Month after month, the program details affordable steps that help the building transition to Green program in a year’s time. Green Business League gives credibility to every member participant. Green buildings are listed with Dun & Bradstreet and the Green Business League. To keep the program relevant, the program revisits the subject each year. There are certifications that make Green Building qualification more difficult by creating a point system that is hard to obtain, but it need not be that complex. There are many steps such as trash management techniques that require only small changes to your present operation.
Green Awareness is the associated training program that comes with the Green Building certification. Each month, each member is advised on the next step in Green operation with very practical applications. Do you know the ten best plants for a Green office that have proven to remove volatile organic compounds and add oxygen? How about the concern for outgassing and simple steps to reduce this harmful process among your workers? There is a failure of cooperation between the day workers of an office and the cleaning service. How do you solve this problem and make sure that there is continuity that improves the Green operation of the building?
Admittedly, there are dozens, even hundreds, of ideas to move any operation to a Green status. While impractical as a whole, the process is doable when taken in simple steps toward the greater goal. It is possible for a company to hire an environmental consultant, pay money for revamping of your facility, and hope that the benefits will outweigh the trouble. Your company could also choose to appoint key person in the facility to start the Green Survey. This same person would also work to incorporate the Green program in monthly stages with minimal cost. The Green Survey is the starting point and enables everyone to enjoy a healthier workplace.