Oregon DEQ: Land Quality - Solid Waste - Commercial Waste Reduction Clearinghouse - Success Stories

Sinks and Faucets

Business: Bend Community School (Bend)

Number of Employees: 3

Vignette

Placed signs above light switches and next to computers to turn lights and computers "off" when not in use. Set thermostats back at night. Turned down water temperature from 135^o to 120^o Fahrenheit. Installed 1.5 gallon-per-minute aerators on faucets at hand-washing sinks. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $210/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 3,000 kWh/year and 13,000 gallons/year of water.

Reduced paper use by encouraging double-sided copying, placing a bin next to the copy machine with "draft" paper (paper that is already used on one side, but can be reused), and turning off the automatic transmission report on the fax machine.

Case Study

None

Business: Brothers’ Restaurant (Ashland)

Number of Employees: unknown

Vignette

Replaced most standard incandescent lamps with compact fluorescent light bulbs.

Installed controls to turn off lights in unoccupied rooms.

Sealed areas where cold air leaked in the building.

Replaced inefficient ductwork.

Installed faucet aerators to reduce water use.

Raised awareness among staff to point out drips and leaks and not run water unnecessarily.

FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $600/year (all activities).

Case Study

Call Oregon Office of Energy, 1-800-221-8035

Business: Cannon Beach City Hall (Cannon Beach)

Number of Employees: 19

Vignette

Eliminated blank pages between print jobs. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $23/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 39 pounds of paper (8 reams)/year.

Converted public notices to a self-mailer (without an envelope). FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $35/year.

Converted heat pump for City Council chambers from electric to natural gas and installed a 24-hour, 7-day thermostat. Since the chambers are used on an infrequent and inconsistent schedule, employees were also trained to be more conscientious about turning the settings down when leaving the room. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: estimated at $422/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 5,560 kWh/year (electricity) and 124 therms/year (natural gas).

Staff check furnace filters every 2-3 months and replace with new filters if needed.

Installed toilet "dummies" (sealed bags filled with a weight, such as rocks) in the tanks of all toilets. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $30/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 7,800 gallons/year.

The sidewalk in front of City Hall is now swept rather than hosed. Sweeping takes no more time than hosing the sidewalk down and uses no water. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $16/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 3,120 gallons/year.

Installed faucet aerators on all sinks, saving energy and water.

Case Study

None

Business: Cannon Beach Elementary School (Cannon Beach)

Number of Employees: 10

Vignette

When garbage cans are emptied, the custodian only replaces the plastic liners if they are soiled or starting to smell. Garbage can liners that have held nothing but paper and other dry wastes are not changed every day. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $90/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 25 pounds of liners/year.

The foot pedal on a large bathroom sink was stuck in the "on" position. Fixing it cut water and sewer bills. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: as much as $1,348/year in water and sewer bills. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 345,600 gallons/year.

Low-flow aerators were installed on restroom and classroom water faucets, saving water and the energy to heat it. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $154/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 39,600 gallons/year.

Floats on tank toilets were adjusted to use less water per flush. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $142/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 40,500 gallons/year.

Coils on refrigerator and milk coolers are vacuumed every 3 months to improve energy efficiency.

Case Study

None

Business: Coffee Resort (Milwaukie)

Number of Employees: 4

Vignette

Repaired a major leak in the toilet. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $1,764/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 332,000 gallons/year.

Purchases dish soap in bulk (larger containers), thus reducing packaging waste. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $20/year.

Washes dishes in dish pans rather than the sink. This saves water, the energy to heat it, and detergent. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $67/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 950 kWh and 6,700 gallons of water/year.

Reduced the number of outside lights. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $225/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 2,360 kWh/year.

Offers reusable mugs for in-store coffee consumption, as an alternative to disposables. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $175/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 178 pounds of disposable cups/year.

Case Study

None

Business: Columbia Gorge Veterinary Clinic (Hood River)

Number of Employees: unknown

Vignette

Installed a ventilation system that reduces the need for air conditioning by using fresh outside air during morning and evening hours. This reduced electricity use by 25-30% and had a two-year payback.

Upgraded lighting and lighting controls and insulated the hot water heater, reducing electricity use another 15-20%. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $225/year.

Installed faucet aerators and a toilet tank displacement to reduce water use.

Reconfigured margins and simplified a medical form to fit onto one page of paper.

Reuses large envelopes and file folders.

Case Study

Call Hood River Green Smart, 541-386-2000.

Business: Computer Renaissance (Corvallis)

Number of Employees: 4

Vignette

Repaired a toilet leak. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $192/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 67,300 gallons/year.

Installed faucet aerator on employee sink. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $5/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 1,750 gallons/year.

Set unoccupied heat/cool on thermostat to 55/85 degrees Fahrenheit.

Turn off all computers and monitors at night. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $191/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 3,475 kWh/year.

Case Study

None

Business: Corvallis Area Chamber of Commerce (Corvallis)

Number of Employees: 12

Vignette

Monthly newsletter is mailed to members without a manila envelope ("self-mailer"). FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $2,100/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 520 pounds of envelopes/year.

Staff have been educated to turn computers off at night and monitors off when not in use. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $380/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 6,900 kWh/year.

Staff have also been educated to turn off lights when they leave the room. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $53/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 850 kWh/year.

Aerators were installed on bathroom faucets to reduce water use and the energy to heat it. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $61/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 26 therms (gas) and 6,300 gallons (water)/year.

Programmable, 24-hour, 7-day thermostats were installed to automatically reduce heating and cooling during unoccupied times.

Ceramic mugs are provided at meetings for guests who don’t want to use disposables. The mugs are then washed in the on-site dishwasher. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $24/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 15 pounds of disposable cups/year.

In over-lit offices, some light bulbs were removed to save energy and reduce the lighting to comfortable levels. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $62/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 1,000 kWh/year, plus light bulbs.

Employees have been educated how to use paper more efficiently in the printers (such as reducing margins and line spacing), how to copy on both sides of the page, and alternatives to full page fax cover sheets. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $74/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 74 pounds of paper/year (about 1-1/2 cases).

Case Study

None

Business: Corvallis City Shop (Corvallis)

Number of Employees: 16

Vignette

The Corvallis City Shop is heated by a boiler which heats water. The water is circulated through a series of fans (blowers) located throughout the building. The City discovered that the boiler had been disconnected from its time clock, and was running ‘round the clock. The City reconnected the boiler to the time clock so that the boiler only runs during occupied hours. In addition, the City installed a thermometer and control device to decrease the boiler temperature as the outside temperature increases. These measures cut natural gas use at the City Shop by more than 50%. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $2,500/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 1,180 therms/year (natural gas).

Repaired a leak in a shop sink. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $12/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 4,400 gallons/year.

Case Study

None

Business: Corvallis-Benton County Public Library (Corvallis)

Number of Employees: 62

Vignette

Transports books between locations in durable plastic totes, rather than paper boxes.

Uses remanufactured toner cartridges. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $325/year.

Buys stationery containing recycled paper.

Recycles office paper, corrugated cardboard boxes, newspaper, yard debris, and bottles and cans.

Encourages the reuse of books through an annual used book sale. Consolidates unsaleable books with Oregon State University for recycling.

The Library has an unofficial policy banning the use of brightly colored papers ("astrobrights") which are difficult to recycle. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $200/year.

All restroom sinks have self-regulating faucets that provide water for about three seconds before shutting off. Water is also set at a constant temperature, so patrons don’t waste water adjusting the temperature.

Reduced run times on automatic sprinkler irrigation system from 20 minutes per station to 6-10 minutes per station. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: approximately $530/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: approximately 440,000 gallons of water/year.

As bulbs in exit signs burn out, staff are replacing them with LED lamps. LED lamps have life expectancies of 30 to 50 years, compared to 4 to 6 months for traditional incandescent lamps. The full retrofit will cost $1,352. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $628/year when fully implemented (electricity and bulb savings, labor savings not included). RESOURCE SAVINGS: 8,000 kWh/year (when fully implemented).

Case Study

Case study exists.

Business: Department of Environmental Quality (Bend)

Number of Employees: ~40

Vignette

Canceling eight out of nine subscriptions to a newsletter and circulating the remaining subscription reduces paper use. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $393/year.

Sending 1,500 copies of a public notification using a postcard rather than a full page inside an envelope saves paper and postage. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $330/year.

Staff conducted a major paper waste prevention program that reduced per-employee use of copy and printer paper by 32%. Employees were encouraged to copy on both sides, avoid printing e-mails, and reformat documents to use less paper. A "tip card" was provided to all employees giving detailed instructions on various methods to use less paper, and the office’s "paper waste prevention coordinator" provided hands-on training to employees. Personal computers were also networked to "draft" printers which use paper that has already been printed or copied on one side. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $472/year (paper only, doesn’t include printing, copying, and filing savings). RESOURCE SAVINGS: 1,000 pounds(20 cases) of paper/year.

Removed 25% to 50% of lamps from fixtures next to windows, in hallways, and in conference rooms. Also removed lamps above individual work stations as requested. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $208/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 4,200 kWh/year

Installed 1.5 gallon per minute aerators on all hand-washing sinks. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $120/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 1,600 kWh and 16,600 gallons of water/year.

Case Study

None

Business: Doubletree Hotels [formerly Red Lion Hotels] (Portland)

Number of Employees: unknown

Vignette

By filtering and recycling water, the central laundry facility saves $35,900 annually in water costs and $16,000 annually in natural gas costs. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $51,900/year.

Other comprehensive energy and water conservation measures include energy management control systems for heating, cooling, and lighting; chillers connected for more efficient operation; converting incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescents; exit sign retrofits; more efficient ballasts in fluorescent fixtures; adjustable speed drives on fan motors; automatic fan controls for individual guest rooms; low-flow showerheads and faucets; and toilet tank adapters to reduce the amount of water used per flush. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: more than $200,000/year.

Case Study

Call the City of Portland's Office of Sustainable Development, 503-823-7222.

Business: Fred Meyer Baking Plant (Clackamas)

Number of Employees: unknown

Vignette

Identified and corrected water leaks and drips totaling 709,000 gallons per year. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $3,280/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 1,772 therms (natural gas) and 709,000 gallons (water)/year.

Changed the packing procedure for bear claws and other pastries. Previously, packing staff had not always had enough time to switch packaging types when production shifted from one product to another. For example, at the end of a batch of bear claws, staff would need to move the packaged bear claws out of the packing area and prepare to package the next product. Insufficient time to make the switch meant that the last products in any given batch were often trashed. By increasing the time between product lines (at the packing end) by three minutes, this problem was largely eliminated. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 12,480 pounds/year.

Case Study

None

Business: Pizza Pipeline (Corvallis)

Number of Employees: 4

Vignette

Repaired a leak in the dishroom sprayer and installed low-flow aerators on sinks, reducing water, sewer, and energy bills. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $769/year. RESOURCE SAVINGS: 10,000 kWh/year and 116,000 gallons of water/year.

Case Study

None

Business: US Post Office (Cannon Beach)

Number of Employees: 3

Vignette

The District Office in Portland now consolidates multiple internal mailings into a single envelope. Previously, each document was sent in its own envelope. This change was implemented throughout the Portland District at the request of the Cannon Beach Postmaster.

Eliminated the printing of blank sheets by the laser printer at the start of each print job.

Changed to carbonless forms, where allowed. The United States Postal Service requires the use of carbon (for copies) in certain register books so local staff can’t change them; however, they do reuse the carbon slips.

A student volunteer makes scratch pads from paper pulled from the recycling bin.

Installed faucet aerators on sinks to reduce water and energy costs. FINANCIAL SAVINGS: $20/year.

Case Study

None

Business: Winchester Country Inn (Ashland)

Number of Employees: unknown

Vignette

Reduced water heater and laundry temperatures.

Using less water in the kitchen and garden.

Sealed air leaks in the building.

Installing higher efficiency lights and educating staff to turn fewer lights on.

FINANCIAL SAVINGS: Winchester Country Inn expects to save $3,000/year from these measures.

Case Study

Call Oregon Office of Energy, 1-800-221-8035.