May 8, 2008

Green Office Offenses: Are YOU Guilty?

Did you leave any printed documents sitting in the printer today? Were the lights left on when you left your office? How about your computer? If so, you may be inadvertently irking your coworkers with your eco-unfriendly habits.

By now most of us have become at least somewhat eco-friendly at home, recycling, reducing waste, and saving energy. But for many of us that effort (and even awareness) ends once we walk out the door and head for the office.

A recent survey conducted for Xerox by Harris Interactive identified the top environmental pet peeves in the workplace.

The top 10 among US office workers:

1) Mindless printing resulting in increased waste (40%)
2) Leaving lights on (37%)
3) Lack of recycling bins (33%)
4) Excessive air conditioning in summer and heat in winter (29%)
5) Excessive use of paper products, like cups, plates, etc. (27%)
6) Coworkers not recycling (27%)
7) Coworkers not printing double-sided when they can (24%)
8) Too many cover sheets when faxing or printing (24%)
9) Having to store paper copies of existing, electronic files (24%)
10) Leaving computer on and not powering down when going home (23%)

If you're now bracing for the office green police to come and get you, don't despair. It really only takes a few small steps to make a big difference. Use technology to cut back on paper use, reduce waste and reduce energy consumption - setting office printers to print double-sided cuts paper use in half, and using multifunction printers and copiers cuts down on energy because you don't need as many machines plugged in or turned on.

For more tips on how to "green" your office, check out www.xerox.com/environment.

Laura Leites, Assistant Editor, Smallbiztechnology.com

tags: energy , environment , green , xerox | 0 comments