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Slideshow:
Looming Beauty |
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California
Gold, continued
Motivating Industry
Meeting California's requirements meant research and
development costs for the carpet industry. What manufacturers asked for
was a purchasing commitment from DGS, which was impossible to guarantee.
However, California's yearly purchase of 12 million square feet of carpet,
along with its mandate that all new carpeting meet the Gold Standard,
proved to be incentive enough to spur manufacturers into action.
"These rules are a little bit stricter (than the NSF standard)," says Lynn
Preston, Technical Environmental Manager for Tandus. "But setting the bar
high will push manufacturers to do more. It will increase environmental
efforts throughout the carpet industry."
In fact, most major manufacturers have been making modifications to their
products and developing new ones. By the end of August, DGS will name
several who made the cut. Burgoyne says that many more will be coming on
line as time goes by. "We (in California) were the first entity that I'm
aware of to commit to buying carpet that meets this standard," he
says. "California is on the cutting edge. Numerous other government entitles are
out there are watching us and looking at this standard."
Catching On
The Gold Standard has also been inserted into the
CHPS (Collaborative for High
Performance Schools) revised guidelines. Schools can receive CHPS credits
for specifying California Gold certified carpet. The standard also meets
LEED (Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design) credits for carpets, which will earn points for
state buildings seeking LEED certification. The University of California
system is also referencing California Gold in a new Request for Proposals.
"It's really exciting.," says Burgoyne. "We have a very supportive
administration on these issues." Indeed, the Governor has made it clear
through his
Executive Order S-20-04, that
environmentally preferable purchasing and sustainable building practices
are a top priority. "He has appointed dedicated environmental leaders to
chair the task forces," Burgoyne continues, "and they, in turn, appoint
and engage people who have a sense of enthusiasm and urgency about
sustainability."
As the
California Gold Standard takes its place in the lexicon of sustainable
practices, several new standards are in place or taking shape – paint,
furniture and low mercury lighting, for example. "We intend to continue
contributing to the establishment of national or state environmental
standards for products the State purchases," says Burgoyne, "and then
implement measures to leverage the State's massive purchasing power by
implementing these standards."
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