Under a new government purchasing policy called the "California Gold Sustainable Carpet Standard," companies selling broadloom to the state will be required to ensure it contains at least 10 percent recycled fiber and fewer smelly and headache-inducing emissions, known as "volatile organic compounds."
Details of the new carpet standard, which goes into effect Sept. 1 and which is being watched closely by a dozen other states, are described in a management memo the state has sent all its department heads.
A copy of the memo was obtained by The Bee.
The standard requires that carpet vendors that want to do business with the state must also:
- Take back more worn carpets and ensure their fibers get recycled at specialized facilities, such as L.A. Fiber Co. of Los Angeles.
- Get certified by a third party as a maker of environmentally friendly and sustainable carpets, whether they are made with petrochemical or bio-based materials.
Carpet makers that are members of the Carpet & Rug Institute, a Georgia-based national trade group representing about 90 per cent of manufacturers, are aware of California's new standard and are gearing up to ensure their products and manufacturing processes will meet it, said Bill Branch, a spokesman for the Department of General Services.
"California did go a little further on the carpet standard, as California is wont to do, adding a few little twists, but nothing that has got we people in the industry exercised," said Werner Braun, the institute's president. "The industry was out there doing this … before California got involved, so it was happy that California has decided to standardize its carpet purchases."
California buys about $26 million worth of new carpet for its departments and agencies each year, Branch said. It replaces worn broadloom and outfits new government buildings and leased facilities, he added.
Branch said the state removes and needs to dispose of 5.3 million square feet of worn carpet every year.
A December 2004 study by the California Integrated Waste Management Board estimated that about 840,000 tons of worn carpets land in California landfills each year, representing about 2 percent of all state waste.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wanted to see worn carpets diverted from landfills to recyclers, adopting an executive order in 2004 to promote environmentally sustainable practices in state buildings, Branch said.
Recyclers take old carpets and process them into new carpet underpads, furniture battings and cushions, reinforcing filler for concrete, fence posts, road underlayment, plastic lumber and automotive parts.
Asked whether the more stringent requirements will boost prices the state pays for its new carpets, Branch replied: "We have heard from some in the carpet industry that this should not affect carpet prices."
California's new carpet policy is the result of ongoing efforts that began in October 2003. An interagency carpet working group has met 13 times since then to develop the carpet standard, a more stringent version of a draft national standard.
State officials also held two public meetings in 2005 that were attended by many players in the national carpet and design industry, Branch said.
The carpet effort is part of a larger state task force whose mission is to develop more environmentally friendly purchasing policies.
In March, General Services adopted a new policy that cuts the mercury content in fluorescent replacement lamps and light bulbs that are bought for its office buildings. New purchasing contracts now require agencies to buy only low-mercury fluorescent tubes, which contain a third of the mercury found in standard ones.
The state replaces 175,000 standard, 4-foot, thin-line fluorescent tubes in its buildings every year so the new policy is significant, Branch said.
http://www.sacbee.com/content/business/story/14267202p-15078949c.html
